Friday, March 10, 2017

PORTLAND, Ore. – With the spring portion of the golf season underway, Western Washington’s Jeffrey Marcum, Concordia’s Philip Kennedy and Saint Martin’s Ryan Pickthorn lead a number of standout performances by GNAC athletes.

Seventh Heaven: Western Washington opened the spring season with a seventh-place finish at the Visit Stockton Cactus Thaw with a score of 7-under 569 in the two-round event. Marcum had the top score of all GNAC athletes, finishing in a tie for sixth place at 5-under 139. Brett Johnson finished second for the Vikings with a score of 2-under 142.

Pioneering New Territory: Concordia was the lone GNAC team to compete in the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout, taking fourth place out of 10 teams with a score of 33-over 885 in the three-round event. Kennedy led the Cavaliers with a score of 8-over 221, which was tied for 14th place.

Weekend With Bay: Saint Martin’s, Concordia and Montana State Billings each competed in the East/West Bay Area Invite, where Saint Martin’s took fourth place with a score of 40-over 904. Concordia took seventh place at 62-over 926, while Montana State Billings finished in ninth place out of 12 teams with a score of 91-over 955. Pickthorn led all GNAC athletes with a score of 3-over 219, finishing all three rounds in 73 strokes.

2016-17 Individual Tournament Winners (3 teams or more)

• Chris Crisologo (SFU): Western Washington Invitational, Sept. 26-27 (5-under 211)
• Austin Spicer (SMU): Grays Harbor College Invitational, Oct. 10-11 (1-under 143)
• Frisby Trevor (SMU): Grays Harbor College Invitational, Oct. 10-11 (1-under 143)
• Chris Crisologo (SFU): Otter Invitational, Oct. 17-18 (8-under 208)
• Tanner Huddleston (CU): Concordia Invitational, Oct. 17-18 (1-over 214)
• Ryan Melnychuk (CU): Concordia Invitational, Oct. 17-18 (1-over 214)

2016-17 Team Tournament Winner (3 teams or more)

• Saint Martin’s: Grays Harbor College Invitational, Oct. 10-11 (1-under 571)
• Concordia: Concordia Invitational, Oct. 17-18 (10-over 862)

2016-17 GNAC Golfers of the Week

Sept. 19-25: Ryan Melnychuk (Concordia, Sr., Grants Pass, Ore. – Univ. of Idaho): Melnychuk was the top GNAC finisher at the Saint Martin’s Invitational on Friday and Saturday. The senior tied for third with a 36-hole score of even-par 142 and finished just four strokes out of the top spot. Also Nominated: Ian Briske (Northwest Nazarene), Chris Hatch (Western Washington).

Sept. 26-Oct. 2: Chris Crisologo (Simon Fraser, 5-9, Jr., Richmond, B.C. – Vancouver Coll.): Crisologo was the medalist at Western Washington Invitational, carding a three-round score of 5-under-par 211 to finish one stroke ahead of four other competitors. He shot low rounds of 3-under-par 69 in both the first and second rounds. Also Nominated: Ryan Pickthorn (Saint Martin’s), Caleb Stetzner (Montana State Billings), Brett Johnson (Western Washington), Ryan Melnychuk (Concordia), Justin Higgins (Northwest Nazarene).

Oct. 3-9: Connor Miele (Montana State Billings, Sr., Edmonds, Wash. – Saint Martin’s Univ.) Miele finished second at the Rocky Mountain College Invitational, shooting 7-under-par 206 in three rounds. He shot a personal best with back-to-back rounds of 68 in the first two rounds. Also Nominated: Jack Strickland (Northwest Nazarene), Brett Johnson (Western Washington), Ryan Melnychuk (Concordia).

Oct. 10-16: Trevor Frisby (Saint Martin’s, So., Edmonds, Wash. - Meadowdale) Frisby collected his first collegiate win at the Grays Harbor CC Ann Swanson Cup. He finished with a two-round score of 142, carding identical rounds of 71 to beat teammate Andrew Raab by two strokes and tie Austin Spicer, while leading the Saints to the team title.

Oct. 17-23: Tanner Huddleston (Concordia, Jr., Woodland, Wash. – Woodland) Huddleston won the Concordia Invitational last Tuesday, firing a three-round score of 214 and beating teammate Ryan Melnychuk in a one-hole playoff. Huddleston helped Concordia win its first tournament since joining the GNAC in 2015. Two of his three individual rounds came in under par. Also Nominated: Ian Briske (Northwest Nazarene), Ryan Pickthorn (Saint Martin’s)

Oct. 24-30: Austin Spicer (Saint Martin’s, Sr., Gresham, Ore. – Gresham) Spicer led the Saints with a 13th place finish at the Cal State San Marcos Fall Classic, carding a score of 13-over-par 226. He had a low round of 74 in the opening round.

Feb. 13-19: Jeffrey Marcum (Western Washington, Sr., Richland, Wash. – South Mountain CC): Marcum was the GNAC’s leading player at the Visit Stockton Spring Thaw last Monday and Tuesday, tying for sixth place with a score of 5-under-par 139. He finished with a low round of 3-under-par 69 on the second day and was just three strokes behind medalist Greg Gonzales of Cal Baptist. Also Nominated: Sy Lovan (Simon Fraser).

Feb. 20-26: Philip Kennedy (Concordia, Jr., Eagle, Idaho – Eagle): Kennedy led Concordia as he tied for 14th individually at the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout in Vallejo, Calif., with a three-round score of 8-over-par 221. He shot a low round of 2-under-par 70 in the final round and led the Cavaliers to a fourth-place team finish. Also Nominated: Sy Lovan (Simon Fraser).

Feb. 27-March 5: Ryan Pickthorn (Saint Martin’s, Sr., Damascus, Ore. – Clackamas): Pickthorn finished fourth individually at the East/West Bay Area Invite, carding a three-round score of 3-over-par 219 as he shot a 1-over-par 73 in all three rounds. He led the Saints to a fourth-place team finish. Also Nominated: Caleb Stetzner (Montana State Billings), Ryan Melnychuk (Concordia).