Tuesday, April 23, 2019
COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho – Winning with plenty of talent and depth all year long, Western Washington held true to form this week in the 2019 GNAC Men's Golf Championships at the Coeur d'Alene Resort Golf Course.
A late addition to the lineup, it was sophomore Brody Bonfilio who led the way for the Vikings. Playing in his first competitive rounds since late-October, the GNAC's reigning Freshman of the Year carded a three-round total of 210 to finish 3-under par. That mark edged out teammate Jordan Lee and Concordia's Jake Wiley, who finished tied for second at 2-under.
Paced by an even-par 568 in the tournament's first day, WWU jumped out to a nine-stroke advantage through the opening two rounds of play. The team then went 1-under par on the final day to earn its ninth GNAC title in program history, clinching the GNAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Championships.
The victory also marked the team's seventh tournament title of the year and ninth top-five showing.
Totaling a 2-over par 215, freshman Aidan Goodfellow led Simon Fraser to a second-place finish at 866 total strokes. Goodfellow's performance had him tied for fourth place individually. Freshman Isaac Lee followed close behind Goodfellow in a tie for seventh, firing a final round 72 for a three-over par total for the tournament.
Paced by the efforts of Wiley and junior Jaxson Daskalos, Concordia took third place with a three-round total of 871. Despite carding a 5-over round of 76 in the opening round, Daskalos finished with scores of 68 and 71 to finish in a tie for fourth. He made 10 birdies for the tournament, one back of Wiley's mark at 11.
Leading Saint Martin's to fourth place (880 strokes) was sophomore Tyler Fitchett, who carded rounds of 69, 72 and 74 to finish tied for fourth. Senior Trevor Frisby was the other Saint to finish inside the top-10, tying for ninth with a total of 217.
Sophomore Caleb Trost was the highest Montana State Billings finisher, ending the event in a tie for 14th (221). His Monday afternoon round of 70 was the second-lowest second round score in the field, helping lead the Yellowjackets to a fifth-place finish.
Northwest Nazarene rounded out the field with a total of 907 and was led by Boise native Henry Bernard's T-14 finish at 8-over par.
The conference's top teams will now move on to the NCAA Division II West/South Central Regional, held May 9-11 at The Ledges Golf Club in St. George, Utah.