HEBRON, Conn. – The University of Hartford is once again atop the Conference of New England (CNE), as the Hawks captured their second consecutive CNE Men’s Golf Championship on Sunday at Blackledge Country Club.
Hartford entered the final round holding a five-stroke advantage and left little doubt on Sunday, firing a tournament-best two-under-par 286 to pull away from the field and finish the 36-hole championship with a team score of 579.
The Hawks finished 16 strokes ahead of runner-up Roger Williams University, which posted rounds of 296 and 299 for a two-day total of 595. Western New England University and Endicott College tied for third at 604, followed by Gordon College in fifth at 610.
Hartford’s championship performance was led by Justin Crossen, who claimed individual medalist honors after putting together the only under-par 36-hole score in the field. Crossen followed Saturday’s two-under 70 with an even better performance in the final round, carding a three-under 69 to finish at five-under 139.
Crossen entered Sunday one stroke behind first-round co-leaders Reid Ohanesian of Roger Williams and Garrett Kendall of Wentworth, but surged to the top of the leaderboard with the lowest score of the final round. Ohanesian finished runner-up at even-par 144 after rounds of 69 and 75, while Western New England’s Kyle DeGroff placed third at one-over 145 following a final-round 72.
Hartford also placed two more golfers inside the top five. Luke Olynick and Griffin Lalonde tied for fourth at two-over 146. Lalonde shot a one-under 71 on Sunday, while Olynick finished with a 75. Tim Kaley rounded out Hartford’s scoring lineup with a final-round even-par 72, finishing tied for 11th overall at five-over 149.
A four-way tie for sixth featured Western New England’s Aidan Devaney, Suffolk University’s Mike Gallagher, Endicott’s Myles O’Quinn and Wentworth’s Garrett Kendall, who each finished the championship at three-over 147. Gordon’s Ben Hoffman completed the top 10 at four-over 148.
The Hawks’ final-round 286 was 13 strokes better than the next-lowest team score of the day and helped Hartford turn its five-shot overnight advantage into a commanding 16-stroke victory. Roger Williams finished second, while Western New England and Endicott shared third place. Gordon, Wentworth, Suffolk, the University of New England and Nichols College rounded out the nine-team field.
With the victory, Hartford successfully defended its conference crown and is the 2026 CNE Men’s Golf Champion.
ABOUT THE CONFERENCE OF NEW ENGLAND
Originally founded in 1984 as the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC), and reconstituted as the Conference of New England (CNE) in 2024, the CNE is an NCAA Division III athletic conference composed of 11 full member and nine associate member institutions throughout the New England region. Its membership aims to provide student-athletes with a positive experience in their pursuit of excellence through high academic standards, quality competition and a meaningful student life. The Conference administers championships in 21 intercollegiate sports.