The Penn State men's golf team traveled to sunny Orlando, Fla., on March 2 to begin its season at the Orange City Xavier Invitational. This week, it's back in chilly State College to get back to the drawing board after placing 14th out of 15 teams.

The Nittany Lions recorded a three-round total of 894, led by sophomore Robert Rohanna's 1-over-par 217, putting him 23rd overall. For Penn State, getting back into competitive form after a long winter may have presented just as much of a challenge as the other teams in the field.

"I think we definitely could have done better," Rohanna said. "But it was hard to get used to the weather."

While 75-degree days may sound pleasant to those who have spent the winter in Pennsylvania, it was a major adjustment to have to make for a team that has spent time practicing indoors at Holuba Hall during the last few months. The indoor practice facility can't simulate the windy conditions the team encountered in its first event of the season, and the driving range wouldn't prepare it for the stiff competition it faced.

Freshman Chad Bricker carded a 226 for the tournament (55th overall), while senior Greg Pieczynski and junior John Aubrey each turned in a 229 (tied for 68th). Senior Marco Poccia rounded out the scoring with a 230 (70th).

"It just wasn't very good, obviously. But you need to take into consideration what we were up against," said Pieczynski, referring to the strong field of mostly warm-weather teams. "The first round I really didn't do anything all that well, especially putting."

Pieczynski said the team as a whole had a disappointing first round, leaving it scrambling as the weekend progressed. He thought the team responded well, though, as its final-round score of 290 was the best of the event for Penn State. It was, however, nowhere near Lamar's winning total of 833.

"[Penn State] Coach [Greg] Nye really didn't put too much emphasis on the result. He was glad that we got it together as the round went on," Pieczynski said.

Rohanna, who once again led the Lions, said the tournament was a good starting point for the team. He posted scores of 70-77-70 on his way to the 23rd-place finish.