Fairfax, Va. – George Mason  freshman Vijay "JJ" Powell finished in the top 10 to lead the Patriots to an 8th place finish at the fourth annual Donald Ross Collegiate Classic in Southern Pines, N.C. 

Powell (73-70-70=213) earned his best finish in his young collegiate career. The freshman finished three-under par, one of only 14 players under par in the tournament. In the final round, Powell finished with four birdies and two bogeys. He began the round with a birdie on the par 5, hole 5, and finished the round with a birdie at the 330-yard par 4.

The freshman had three top 25 finishes during the fall season, including a season-best 13th at the Red Bandana Invitational. 

Senior Nikita Gubenko bounced back after an opening round 77 with a 74 and 73 in the final two rounds. Sophomore Samir Davidov scored a one-under par 71 to begin the tournament and ended with a par 72 in the final round to finish tied for t-47.

Loyola Maryland won the tournament for the second time in the four-year history of the Donald Ross Collegiate. The Greyhounds finished 10-under par, one stroke ahead of runner-up Miami University (OH). Old Dominion finished in third place with a three-under-par team score in the 16-team tournament.

Brett Podobinski from Miami University (OH) earned medalist honors in the field of 100. Playing as an individual, Podobinski (69-74-66=209) finished 7-under par, just one stroke ahead of teammate Danny Fisher. The RedHawks had three players finish in the top four. 

MASON RESULTS
T8     JJ Powell (73-70-70=213)
T47 Nikita Gubenko (77-74-73=224)
T47  Samir Davidov (71-81-72=224)
T58  Aryan Vuradi (76-75-75=226)
T86  Sam Brown (79-75-83=235)
Individuals
T42 Colin Slater (74-75-79=228)
T77 Brayden Dahl  (82-73-73=228)
T85 Seth Conway (82-77-76=235)
 
Ross Collegiate Champions
2021 – Loyola (Md) (302-287-286=875)
2022 – Seton Hall (298-288-287=873)
2023 – South Florida (283-283-283= 849)
2024 -- Loyola (Md) (289-276-289=854) (-10)
 
Ross Collegiate Individual Champions
2021 --    UNC Greensboro Tommy Lamb (71-71-70 = 12)
2022 –    Princeton's William Huang (73-67-70=210)
                North Carolina Kenan Poole (72-71-67=210)
2023 --    George Washington's Jakob Hrinda (66-69-68=203) (-13)
2024 --   Miami (OH) Brett Podobinski (69-74-66=209) (-6)

Best Mason Individual Finishes
2021 – 3rd Place -- Florian Blatti (74-72-68=214)
2022 – 6th Place -- JP Miller (73-70-73=216)
2023 – 10th Place – Samir Davidov (72-71-75 f=218) (+2)  
2024 -- T8 --JJ Powell (73-70-70=213) (-3)
 
Mason Team Finishes
2021 – 5^th
2022 – 6^th
2023 – 10^th
2024 - T8

Up Next
The George Mason golf team will play next in the William & Mary Invitational, March 25-26.