PETERSBURG, Va. — The Catawba College men's golf team demolished the program's 54-hole against-par record to capture the top prize at the Griffin Invitational on Tuesday. After finishing tied for first place, Paul Esnault won the playoff to rank second in program history with three individual wins.

RESULTS
1. Paul Esnault (210, -6)
T-3. Ilia Antoniadis (211, -5)
13. Alec Barker (217, +1)
T-14. Maxence Bonnet (218, +2)
T-55. Pranay Kapur (230, +14)

HIGHLIGHTS
- Esnault holed out with an eagle on his first hole of the day en route to his third straight two-under-par round, enough to elevate into first place
- Antoniadis balanced a two-over opening nine with three birdies on the back, finishing at even par on Day 2 for a cumulative five-under-par score to land on the podium
- An up-and-down final round for Barker included four birdies and stacked up at two-over, giving him a final score of 217 in a 13th-place effort
- Bonnet capped his college debut with a one-under-par 71, jumping 10 spots into a share of 14th place at 218

NOTES
- The team beat its previous 54-hole tournament against-par record, set last fall at the Richard Rendleman Invitational, by six shots
- Esnault's six-under score is the program's best against-par finish by a junior
- Esnault recorded three consecutive under-par rounds; one more will set a new program record
- The Caen, France, product has won the team's last two season-opening events (medalist at the Malone-Glenmoor Fall Invitational in 2024)
- The final scores posted by Esnault and Antoniadis rank second and third in against-par standings, as well as eighth and ninth overall, respectively

UP NEXT
Catawba returns to action when it hosts the Richard Rendleman Invitational on Oct. 6 and 7 at the Country Club of Salisbury.