Friday, September 28, 2018

PORTLAND, Ore. - All six of the GNAC's men's golf teams were in action this week, traveling to DuPont and Bellingham, Wash. for the Saint Martin's and Western Washington Invitationals.

Western Washington came away with a first-place finish in both events, following up a 17-stroke victory in DuPont with a win on the team's home course. They finished the two-day tournament at Bellingham Golf & Country Club with a total of 861, coming in two strokes ahead of second-place Chico State.

Senior Cody Roth led the way for WWU, finishing at 4-under-par across three rounds of play in Bellingham. Roth was fresh off GNAC Golfer of the Week honors following a T-2 finish at last week's Saint Martin's Invitational.

The next-highest placing team from the GNAC at both the WWU and Saint Martin's Invitationals was Simon Fraser. The Clan followed up a second-place finish at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash. with a top-five showing in Bellingham.

Freshman Isaac Lee has led his team through the first two tournaments of the year with a scoring average of 72.5.

LAST WEEK'S TOURNAMENTS
Saint Martin's Invitational (Sept. 21-22 at The Home Course, DuPont, Wash.): Team - 1, Western Washington, 855 (284-283-288). 2, Simon Fraser, 872 (287-286-299). T5, Concordia, 880 (302-298-290). T7, Saint Martin's, 893 (297-288-308). 15, Northwest Nazarene, 907 (298-299-310). 16, Montana State Billings, 924 (307-295-322). Individuals - T2, Cody Roth, Western Washington, 211 (73-67-71). T4, Isaac Lee, Simon Fraser, 212 (68-69-75). 6, Nick Sparling, Western Washington, 213 (71-73-69). T7, Michael Butler, Western Washington, 215 (71-71-73). 10, Ethan Casto, Western Washington, 216 (69-72-75). 11, Aidan Goodfellow, Simon Fraser, 217 (71-72-74). 12, Alan Tolusso, Simon Fraser, 218 (74-69-75). T14, Henry Bernard, Northwest Nazarene, 220 (74-72-74). T14, Spencer Rhodes, 220 (73-71-76).

WWU Invitational (Sept. 24-25 at Bellingham Golf & Country Club, Bellingham, Wash.): Team - 1, Western Washington, 861 (289-287-285). 5, Simon Fraser, 877 (296-288-293). 7, Saint Martin's, 886 (283-304-299). 11, Concordia, 892 (300-294-298). 17, Northwest Nazarene, 905 (303-300-302). 18, Montana State Billings, 922 (300-304-318). Individuals - 4, Cody Roth, Western Washington, 212 (73-70-69). 5, Jordan Lee, Western Washington, 214 (69-72-73). T7, Jaxson Daskalos, Concordia, 216 (74-71-71). T9, Sy Lovan, Simon Fraser, 217 (76-68-73). T9 Nick Sparling, Western Washington, 217 (72-74-71).

AROUND THE GNAC
CONCORDIA
• Playing in their third tournament of the fall season, the Cavaliers finished just outside the top-10 with an 11th-place showing at the WWU Invitational.

• Concordia put up a pair of top-five finishes in its first two outings this season, beginning with a title at the Yellowjacket Fall Invitational before tying for fifth at the Saint Martin's Invitational.

• Junior Jaxson Daskalos was the team's top placer in Bellingham, using a pair of 71s to pave the way to an even-par finish. His three-round total of 216 put him in a tie for seventh individually. Daskalos was the GNAC Men's Golfer of the Week in the first week of the season after earning medalist honors at the Yellowjacket Fall Invitational.

• The Cavaliers have two weeks off now before returning to the course. They will be back in action Oct. 8-9 when they host the Concordia Invite in Portland. 

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
• Montana State Billings ended the month of September with an 18th-place showing at the WWU Invitational, finishing with a three-round total of 922 (300-304-318).

• Caleb Trost led the way for MSUB, carding an 11-over-par 227 over three rounds. Trost is tied for second in scoring average on the Montana State Billings roster with an average of 75.2. Junior Garrett Woodin leads the team at 74.9.

• Montana State Billings will return to action next week at the Rocky Mountain College Invitational, running Oct. 1-2 at Peter Yegen Golf Course in Billings.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
• Northwest Nazarene came in 17th place at this week's WWU Invitational, recording a total score of 905.

• Nampa-native Justin Higgins finished tied for 36th to lead the Nighthawks. The team's No. 5 player entering the tournament, Higgins showed marked improvement over all three rounds (77-74-72).

• Junior Henry Bernard was the other Nighthawk to place inside the top-50. Bernard carded a 9-over-par 225.

• Up next for NNU is a trip to Portland for the Concordia Invite.

SAINT MARTIN'S
• Playing in their second tournament of the fall season, the Saints finished seventh at the WWU Invitational.

• A red-hot start to the tournament had the team sitting in first place at the completion of round one, leading a field of 20 teams with a first-round total of 283.

• Freshman Maxwell Turnquist was the team's top placer in Bellingham, using a first-round 67 to carry him to a tie for 16th place. The Yakima, Wash.-native is tied for first on the team in scoring average with sophomore Tyler Fitchett at 73.7.

• Saint Martin's got its season underway last week, hosting the Saint Martin's Invitational. The Saints finished in a tie for seventh in DuPont.

• The Saints now have three weeks off before returning to action. They will be back on the course at the Dixie State Regional Preview, held Oct. 15-16 in St. George, Utah.

SIMON FRASER
• Simon Fraser ended the month of its season with a fifth-place finish at the WWU Invitational, posting a three-round total of 877 (296-288-293).

• Sy Lovan led the way for SFU, carding a 1-over-par 217 over three rounds. It's freshman Isaac Lee who leads the team in scoring, however, averaging 72.5 through six rounds of play.

• The showing in Bellingham marked Simon Fraser's second top-five finish in as many tournaments after coming in second at the Saint Martin's Invitational.

• The team will return to the course in a couple of weeks at the Concordia Invite.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
• The Vikings took home their second tournament title in as many weeks at the WWU Invitational, recording a three-day total of 861 to finish on top of the 20-team field.

• Senior Cody Roth finished in fourth place to lead the Vikings. The Bellingham-native finished with rounds of 70 and 69 to beat all other GNAC individuals.

• Jordan Lee was the other Viking to place inside the top-five. Lee carded a 2-under-par 214 with a low round of 69 coming on Monday morning.

• Last week saw WWU return to the links for the first time this fall and the team returned in style. Western Washington placed first at the Saint Martin's Invitational, routing an 18-team field for a 9-under-par finish that was 17 strokes clear of second place. The high mark earned the Vikings GNAC Team of the Week honors.

• Up next for Western Washington is a trip south to Portland for the Concordia Invite, where it will join four other GNAC teams at Columbia Edgewater Country Club.

GNAC Men’s Golfer of the Week (Sept. 24, 2018)
Cody Roth (Western Washington, Sr., Bellingham, Wash. – Bellingham): Roth opened his 2018-19 season by tying for second place at the Saint Martin’s Invitational as he carded a three-round score of 5-under-par 211. He shot under-par in both the second and third rounds, led by his second-round score of 5-under-par. Roth led Western Washington to the team title as the Vikings carded 9-under-par 855, 17 strokes ahead of second-place Simon Fraser.

Also Nominated: Isaac Lee (Simon Fraser).