STATE COLLEGE, Pa. April 27, 2003 The Penn State men¡¯s golf team set a new tournament record and claimed its 12th consecutive team title today in the final round of the 27th Annual Rutherford Intercollegiate at the par-72 Penn State Blue Course. The Nittany Lions finished at 12 under par with a total score of 852 for the three-round event, shattering the previous tournament record of 859, which they set last year.

Penn State began the final round at 568, with a four-stroke lead over Maryland and Liberty University. The Nittany Lions successfully held off the challengers, and even opened up an eight-point margin of victory, shooting a final-round 284. Liberty University took second place for the tournament with a score of 860 (-4), followed by Maryland in third place with 862 (-2).

Senior Jim Fuller (Muskogee, Okla.), the leader after two rounds, posted a skillful three-under 69 in the final round to claim second-place honors with a 54-hole total of 207, or nine under par. Fellow Oklahoma native Ted Neville (Oklahoma City, Okla.) finished in a four-way tie for fifth place after shooting a final-round 70 to come in at three under par for the tournament with a 213. Sophomore Greg Pieczynski (Kingston, Pa.) came back from a disappointing 78 in the first round to post consecutive rounds of 69 and earn a share of 13th place with an even 216. Sophomore Andrew Price (Mission Viejo, Calif.) and senior Jason Totin (Delaware, Ohio) also effectively contributed to the record-breaking effort with total scores of 220 and 228, respectively.

Competing as an individual, junior Jonas Hyden (Saltsjobaden, Sweden) put together three solid rounds to finish in a six-way tie for 15th place at 217.

Western Kentucky freshman Robby Shaw had an amazing record-breaking day himself. He tied the course record with a final round 10-under 62 and demolished the individual tournament record with a 15-under 201. He broke the previous record of 206, which was set last year by Penn State¡¯s Jeff Turton.

Penn State head coach Greg Nye was thrilled with his team¡¯s performance at the tournament. ¡°This golf tournament was hotly contested throughout,¡± said Nye. ¡°We played an outstanding back-nine today, and that simply won the tournament for us.¡±

With today¡¯s title, Penn State has now won the Rutherford Intercollegiate 17 times. In addition, the Nittany Lions have now broken the tournament record five-consecutive years. This year¡¯s score of 852 is the second-best 54-hole score in school history behind a score of 838 posted in 1998.

Penn State will return to action next weekend at the Big Ten Championships, which will be held at the Indiana University Golf Course from May 2 through May 4.

Final Team Standings:
1. Penn State 292, 276, 284 - 852
2. Liberty University 293, 279, 288 - 860
3. Maryland 295, 277, 290 - 862
4. Western Kentucky 287, 292, 285 - 864
5. George Mason 298, 289, 282 869
6. James Madison 302, 280, 288 - 870
7. Temple 294, 285, 295 - 874
8. Georgetown 298, 289, 292 - 879
9. Towson 304, 282, 302 - 888
10. Bowling Green 305, 293, 291 - 889
11. Akron 311, 288, 292 - 891
T12. St. Joseph¡¯s 305, 300, 300 - 905
T12. Richmond 312, 297, 296 - 905
14. St. Bonaventure 318, 293, 295 - 906
15. Villanova 300, 306, 302 - 908

Top Ten Individuals:
1. Robby Shaw (WKU) 68, 71, 62 201
2. Jim Fuller (PSU) 71, 67, 69 - 207
3. Nick Cook (GU) 70, 69, 69 - 208
4. Jay Lindell (SBU) 72, 70, 70 - 212
T5. Tim Kane (UMD) 72, 72, 69 - 213
T5. Jay Woodson (JMU) 73, 68, 72 213
T5. Ted Neville (PSU) 73, 70, 70 213
T5. James Chan (Tem) 72, 70, 71 213
T9. Craig Mason (GMU) 72, 70, 72 214
T9. Chris Barr (GMU) 74, 73, 67 214
T9. Paul Carey (LU) 71, 71, 72 214

Other Penn State Finishes:
T13. Greg Pieczynski 78, 69, 69 216
T15. Jonas Hyden (Ind.) 75, 67, 75 217
T21. Mark Leon (Ind.) 71, 73, 74 - 218
T27. Andrew Price 74, 70, 76 220
T55. Jason Totin 74, 78, 76 228
T68. Rafael Toro 75, 77, 78 230
74. Brian Fitzpatrick 86, 75, 76 - 237