The National Golf Invitational’s first-round leaderboard is a tight one. Wyoming’s Cowboys, who finished the day at Ak-Chin South Dunes in Maricopa Arizona 8-under, only had a 1-shot lead over Penn State.
Seven shots separate the top nine positions on the leaderboard. Stetson is 10 shots behind the leaderboard in 11th position with 2 over. For a program which lives in the negative, 10 shots are very important.
Hatters never made it to the postseason until this year. Danny Forshey, a second-year head coach, has instilled a culture of competition at home in Daytona Beach. This competitive spirit carried his team to the desert.
Forshey took stock when he first arrived at Alcorn State two years ago. He had previously been a coach at Appalachian State and Bethune-Cookman. This season, he brought in five players to complement the existing roster. It became a birdie-fest all the time.
Forshey stated, “Every time we qualified it was incredibly competitive and difficult to get into the lineup.” It forced the guys to improve and shoot lower scores.
Round One Results from the National Golf Invitational#GoHatters pic.twitter.com/5U9zLtBFYE
Stetson Golf 20 May 2023 HTML0
It took rounds of 60s or below to be able to sit in the van. Forshey says that some players did not get to participate in tournaments to the extent they had hoped. However, the competition helped to sharpen the entire roster.
The fall was the first time it showed.
Stetson finished second in three fall tournaments, and also won the Daytona Beach Intercollegiate. The Hatters’ team performance was below par in 15 of the fall tournament rounds. Stetson ranked No. 1 after the first half season. Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings ranked Stetson No. 55. The team’s fall season was as good as any other program in the 13-team NGI field.
Forshey stated, “This is the most special group I have been a member of.”
Stetson could potentially open up even more opportunities if they make it to the postseason. Forshey says his team is learning as they go at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes. He has stressed driving the ball and playing the first bounce of the desert greens.
Mason Quagliata, who grew up in Scottsdale, Arizona, is well aware of the situation. Quagliata led Stetson with a 4-under-68, bogey free round on Friday. He is tied for third place individually. Tyler Severin of Wyoming is the leader at 6 under.
Quagliata stated, “I started off with a great start. I birdied-birdied, which always helps to get in the flow.” The putter then felt great. “I felt I hit it in the right places, got up and down as needed and took advantage of all the opportunities.”
Quagliata is a junior redshirt who has never competed in a college tournament in his state. He has already taken his teammates to the home course and to his house this week.
Quagliata, a senior in high school, has experienced both the Forshey and post-Forshey Stetson Golf eras. Quagliata, a Stetson golfer, said that the new climate meant you had to work hard if you wanted to play.
He said, “We all became more comfortable shooting under par in qualifying when we saw scores like those being shot. Then when you go to a tournament it is not such a big deal to shoot below par because you do it every time on your home course,”
Quagliata was not concerned about postseason when he began the recruitment process. Quagliata wanted to attend a school that would allow him to play and improve, but the bonus of this week was a nice addition.
Forshey was proud of players like Quagliata and new recruits, who believed in the potential of Stetson. The NGI represents a major step in the progression of the program.
Forshey stated, “I think that the fun thing for us is that this was just an idea or a dream a year ago.” “We put together a plan to bring together a group that is competitive and wants to compete. Some people are not interested because they might miss out on playing as much.
“We assembled a special team and all of the guys bought into it.” “We’re an underdog tale.”
