Thursday, September 28, 2023
by Thomas Lal

PORTLAND, Ore. – The first week of GNAC men’s golf action was a busy affair with all five teams competing in at least two tournaments.

Saint Martin’s hosted the SMU Bishop Fall Invitational in DuPont, Wash., from Sept. 22-23 with the Vikings hosting the Western Washington Invitational just days later in Bellingham from Sept. 25-26. Defending conference champion Simon Fraser came out of the gates swinging to win both of those tournaments and open the season with two wins for the first time since joining the NCAA.

Montana State Billings was the busiest squad in the conference, competing at the Hardrocker Fall Invitational in Rapid City S.D., from Sept. 18-19 before traveling to both Washington tournaments.

Next week sees both Saint Martin’s and Simon Fraser heading to California for the Chico State Wildcat Classic from Oct. 2-3 while the rest of the conference takes time off from competition.

WE THE NORTH: After winning the 2023 GNAC Men’s Golf Championships, Simon Fraser has stepped right back into the swing of things by winning both the SMU Bishop Fall Invitational and the Western Washington Invitational to open the 2023-24 campaign. The pair of victories marks the first time the Red Leafs have won their first two tournaments of the season since joining the NCAA.

At the SMU Bishop Fall Invitational, Simon Fraser carded a three-round team score of 4-under-par 860 to claim victory by six strokes over Cal State East Bay. Freshman Justin Bjornson led the charge for SFU in his collegiate debut, carding a three-round score of 3-under-par 213 to finish eighth. Junior Bailey Bjornson was just one stroke behind his younger brother, carding a score of 2-under-par 213 to take ninth place. Senior Michael Crisologo and junior Kyle Mayner rounded out the scoring effort for Simon Fraser.

Just two days later, the Red Leafs teed off at the Western Washington Invitational where they would take another win with a three-round score of 9-over-par 873. Simon Fraser opened its tournament with its best round and carried that momentum to a two-stroke win over the host Vikings.

All four of SFU’s top golfers finished within two strokes of each other, led by redshirt freshman Denby Carswell in 10th with a three-round score of 2-over-par 218. Nothing could separate the Bjornson brothers as they tied for 11th with scores of 3-over-par 219. Justin Bjornson shot the best round between the pair with a 1-under-par 71 to open the tournament.

Simon Fraser will be in action next at the Chico State Wildcat Classic at the Butte Creek Country Club in Chico, Calif., on Monday.

ALWAYS ON THE GO: Montana State Billings has been the busiest team in the conference to start the season, competing in three tournaments across two weeks. The Yellowjackets opened their season at the Hardrocker Fall Invitational in Rapid City, S.D., where they took a second-place finish with a two-round score of 591. They followed that up by tying for ninth at the SMU Bishop Fall Invitational with a three-round score of 892 and an eighth-place finish at the Western Washington Invitational with a score of 897.

Senior Liam O’Halloran was one of MSUB’s top two golfers at all three tournaments. O’Halloran tied for second place at the Hardrocker Fall Invite, carding a two-round score of 4-under-par 140 along with senior teammate Kevin Kolb. At the SMU Bishop Fall Invitational, O’Halloran was the second-highest placed MSUB golfer in a tie for 25th with a three-round score of 5-over-par 221. To cap off the three-tournament stretch, O’Halloran led the Yellowjackets at the WWU Invitational with a score of 5-over-par 221 to tie for 17th.

Carson Garner was another senior to open the season strong for Montana State Billings. Garner opened his season with a sixth-place finish in Rapid City before tying for 19th at the SMU Invitational. He followed that up in a tie for 26th at the WWU Invitational.

SUPER SAINTS LED BY TURNQUIST: Saint Martin’s senior Max Turnquist is no stranger to playing in clutch scenarios, having made it all the way to the NCAA Division II West/South Central Regional last season. Turnquist turned in another excellent performance to open his season at the SMU Bishop Fall Invitational, winning the tournament in a three-hole playoff after carding a three-round score of 6-under-par 210.

Read More: Turnquist’s Playoff Victory Highlights POTW Picks

Turnquist’s efforts led Saint Martin’s to a fourth-place finish at The Home Course as the team finished with a three-round score of 7-over-par 871. The Saints were one stroke ahead of fifth-place Northwest Nazarene and just two strokes behind third-place British Columbia. Freshman Kyle Erwin was also impressive on debut, following Turnquist home in a five-way tie for 11th with a score of 1-over-par 217. The result tied Erwin for the fourth-highest finish of any GNAC golfer in the tournament.

Erwin showed that his debut performance wasn’t just beginner’s luck, leading SMU at the WWU Invitational with a three-round score of 9-over-par 225 to tie for 26th. As a team, the Saints finished in ninth place with a score of 904, one stroke ahead of Victoria and seven strokes behind Montana State Billings. Turnquist finished two strokes behind Erwin in a tie for 34th with Carter Sheets and Chase Gardner completing the scoring effort.

DEJA BLUE: Western Washington carded the exact same team score at the SMU Bishop Fall Invitational and its own Western Washington Invitational to open the season. The Vikings finished both tournaments with a three-round score of 875 with WWU placing 6th in DuPont, Wash., and second in Bellingham.

Juniors Ryan Ho and Seth King led the Vikings on The Home Course, tying for 11th with scores of 1-over-par 217. King carded Western Washington’s lowest round of the tournament, shooting a 4-under-par 68 in the second round. Senior Drew Halili and junior Matteo Polla rounded out the scoring for WWU.

At their own Western Washington Invitational, the Vikings were led to second place by freshman Nathan Yocam with a three-round score of 2-under-par 214 to tie for third. Yocam shot his best round to close out the tournament with a 3-under-par 69. King tied for sixth place with a score of even-par 261 along with sophomore Peter Dionne-Yahr who competed as an individual. Junior Cole Reynolds and Ho rounded out the top four for WWU in 25th and tied for 26th, respectively.

ROAD HAWKS: Along with most of the conference programs, Northwest Nazarene competed at both the SMU Bishop Invitational and the Western Washington Invitational to open its season. The Nighthawks took fifth place in DuPont, Wash., with a three-round score of 8-over-par 872. They followed that up with a sixth-place finish in Bellingham with a score of 895.

Freshman Kasey Gaff has been one of the most efficient golfers in the conference early in the season, leading NNU and ranking second in the GNAC with a 71.8 stroke average through the first six rounds of his collegiate career. Gaff had a solid season-opener at the SMU Bishop Invite, finishing in 16th with a score of 2-over-par 218 to finish just one stroke behind senior teammate Grayson Giboney. Gaff followed that up by leading the team at the WWU Invitational with a three-round score of 3-under-par 213 to capture second place, just one stroke behind medalist Tyler Ashman of Chico State.  

Hardrocker Fall Invitational (Sept. 18-19 at The Golf Club at Red Rocks, Rapid City, S.D.) Team – 1, Westminster, 580. 2, Montana State Billings, 591. Individuals – 1, Bryson Hirabayashi, Westminster, 136. T-2, Kevin Kolb, Montana State Billings, 140. T-2, Liam O’Halloran, Montana State Billings, 140. 6, Carson Garner, Montana State Billings, 147. T-7, Blake Finn, Montana State Billings, 152. T-7, Lucas Howell, Montana State Billings, 152. T-18, Paul O’Neil, Montana State Billings, 159.

SMU Bishop Fall Invitational (Sept. 22-23 at The Home Course, DuPont, Wash.) Team – 1, Simon Fraser, 860. 4, Saint Martin’s, 871. 5, Northwest Nazarene, 872. 6, Western Washington, 875. T-9, Montana State Billings, 892. Individuals – 1, Max Turnquist, Saint Martin’s, 210. 8, Justin Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 213. 9, Bailey Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 214. T-11, Michael Crisologo, Simon Fraser, 217. T-11, Kyle Erwin, Saint Martin’s, 217. T-11, Grayson Giboney, Northwest Nazarene, 217. T-11, Ryan Ho, Western Washington, 217. T-11, Seth King, Western Washington, 217. 16, Kasey Gaff, Northwest Nazarene, 218.

Western Washington Invitational (Sept. 25-26 at Bellingham Golf & Country Club, Bellingham, Wash.) Team – 1, Simon Fraser, 873. 2, Western Washington, 875. 6, Northwest Nazarene, 895. 8, Montana State Billings, 897. 9, Saint Martin’s, 904. Individuals – 1, Tyler Ashman, Chico State, 212. 2, Kasey Gaff, Northwest Nazarene, 213. T-3, Nathan Yocam, Western Washington, 214. T-6, Peter Dionne-Yahr, Western Washington, 216. T-6, Seth King, Western Washington, 216. 10, Denby Carswell, Simon Fraser, 218. T-11, Bailey Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 219. T-11, Justin Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 219.

Sept. 25 GNAC Men's Golf Player of the Week

Max Turnquist, Saint Martin's

Turnquist won the SMU Bishop Invitational in the form of a three-hole playoff on Saturday. The senior shot a three-round total of 210 (70-71-69) which slotted him a 6-under-par for the event. Turnquist made 10 birdies and an eagle across his 54 holes and limited his mistakes with just six bogeys.

Also Nominated: Liam O’Halloran, MSUB; Bailey Bjornson, SFU; Seth King, WWU.

The 2024 GNAC Men's Golf Championships will be held April 22-23 at the Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. All five programs will compete in the three-round tournament with the team champion receiving the conference’s automatic berth to the NCAA Championships.