Five schools will convene Saturday at Piney Branch Country Club in Hempstead, Md., this weekend for the first Capital Athletic Conference golf championship.

The addition of Hood College, Villa Julie College and Wesley College to membership in the CAC for the 2007-08 academic year gave the conference five varsity golf programs. The CAC Board of Directors endorsed a championship beginning in 2008, and Villa Julie offered to host the first championship.

Joining Hood, Villa Julie and Wesley, which is ranked 23rd in the country, in the first CAC golf championship will be teams from Marymount University and York College of Pa.

Twenty-five student-athletes will play in a two-day, 36-hole championship, beginning at noon Saturday (4/26) and Sunday (4/27).

Here is a look at the leaders on each of the five teams competing in the championship.

HOOD's freshman-laden golf squad participated in seven tournaments this season in preparation for its first CAC tournament. Junior Ryan Junghans has played in two tournaments and owns the lowest stroke average on the squad (80). Freshman Andrew Alger carded the Blazers' low round of the season with a seven-over 78 against Villa Julie back in October in a match that was held at Piney Branch Golf Club, the site of this year's CAC tournament. Aaron Prescott owns an 88.3 stroke average, while Evan Chaney (90.1) and Daniel Reid (100.3) round out the Hood contingent.

MARYMOUNT, which finished 10th in a recent tournament at Franklin & Marshall that included all five CAC teams, has been led this spring by junior Ryan Fitzmeyer and sophomore Max Brouse. The Saints finished third among the five CAC teams in that event.

VILLA JULIE will be looking to cause an upset this weekend in their first season in the Capital Athletic Conference. This season the Mustangs have been up and down with their performances on the course. Consistency has been the issue for the Mustangs but there has been signs of improvement in recent weeks. The Mustangs have finished 4th, 3rd and 5th in their last three tournaments. Cliff Mangle leads the team with a low round score of 72, and is currently averaging an 80. Matt Lukehart and Steve Watts are close behind, averaging scores close to 81.

WESLEY enters the CAC Championships after consecutive wins at the Bent Creek Invitational and the Wesley Spring Invitational. Chris Osberg won at Bent Creek shooting a 66 to tie the school record for lowest round. It was one of the top 10 rounds in the nation that week, regardless of division. The Wolverines' 292 was the conference's low team round for the year. At the Wesley Spring Invitational, Michael Rushin and Will Scarborough finished first and second to lead Wesley to the team win. Overall, Wesley's top four of Rushin, Scarborough, Andrew Geyer, Osberg and Riley Powers all rank among the top seven in the conference in scoring, led by Rushin's 74.8. The Wolverines have also combined to win all but one of the CAC's Golfer of the Week Awards in 2007-08. Wesley is currently ranked 23^{rd in the nation by Golf Stat.}

YORK is paced by senior Sean Leitzell as he owns a 77.3 stroke average. He is one of three Spartans that have sub-80 stroke averages. Leitzell has three top five finishes and seven top tens for the year. Shane Bernard is averaging 79.3 strokes in nine rounds for the campaign. Sophomore Cody Trabert is the third Spartan in the 70's as he is averaging 79.5 strokes per round. York has won three tournaments this season, claiming victory in the Blue Jay Fall Classic on September 15, the Dickinson Spring Invitational on March 24 and the York Spring Invitational on March 31. York has accumulated a record of 103-38-2. York has shot under 310 as a team in seven different tournaments for the year including carding a season-best total of 306 in two different tournaments for the year.