University Park, Pa., March 7, 2005 - The Penn State men's golf team shot a 598 to take sixth place in the first two rounds of the Irish Invitational held at Mission Inn Golf Course in Howie in the Hills, Fla. Senior Mark Leon (Brampton, Ontario) fired a 144 (E) just three strokes off of the leader, Judd Easterling of Wichita State who finished with 141 (-3). Wichita State leads the tournament with a score of 573 followed by Colorado State (585) and San Diego State (593) to round out the top three.

Along with Leon, freshman Robert Rohanna (Waynesburg, Pa.) also posted a solid performance taking 11th place overall with a score of 147 (+3). Senior Greg Pieczynski (Kingston, Pa.) finished in a tie for 31st after shooting a 152 (+8) while junior Marco Poccia (Sartoga Springs, N.Y.) finished in a tie for 40th with a score of 155 (+11). Senior Ted Neville (Oklahoma City, Okla) shot a 161 (+17) to take 59th place.

The Nittany Lions will try to catch Wichita State in the third and final round of the invitational tomorrow on the par-72 course. Penn State will then travel to Humble, Texas to participate in the Hall of Fame Invitational on March 18.