Thursday, April 5, 2018

PORTLAND, Ore. – Of the four GNAC teams competing at the Mustang Intercollegiate earlier this week, it was Western Washington that finished strong as the Vikings led all conference teams in a tie for third place at 19-under par (845).Heading into the final round at 8-under par, the Vikings shot a tournament-low 11-under par 277 to tie with Colorado Springs.

Junior Cody Roth played his best golf of the year as he led the GNAC in a tie for sixth place at 9-under par 207. Roth shot under par in all three rounds, which was highlighted by his 4-under par effort in the opening round. His teammate, freshman Brody Bonfilio, tied for eighth place at 8-under par 208. Simon Fraser senior Chris Crisologo rounded out the GNAC’s top-three finishers in 11th with a 7-under par 209. The Clan finished the tournament in seventh.

Concordia was also in action earlier this week at the Hanny Stanislaus Invitational, where it carded a 22-over par 886. The Cavaliers turned in the best round of the tournament on Monday afternoon as they combined for a 5-under par 283 in the second round.

Matching his best finish of the season last week, junior Michael Butler was named the GNAC Men’s Golf Player of the Week after he led the Vikings to a sixth-place finish at the SoCal Intercollegiate. Butler tied for ninth place as he carded a three-round score of 5-over-par 221, which included a low 18-hole score of 71 in the opening round. It was Butler’s fourth consecutive top-20 tournament finish.

Montana State Billings and Northwest Nazarene are the only two GNAC schools that will partake in tournaments prior to the GNAC Championships on April 23-24. Montana State Billings hosts the Yellowjacket Spring Invitational on April 16 while the Nighthawks host the NNU Intercollegiate on the same date.

LAST WEEK’S TOURNAMENTS

Desert Intercollegiate (Mar. 26-27 at The Golf Club at Terra Lago, Indio, Calif.): Team – 1 Victoria (B.C.), 903 (303-293-307). 13, Northwest Nazarene, 993 (329-327-337). Individuals – 1, Bruce Tomie, Victoria (B.C.), 224 (75-72-77). T42, Tyler Joplin, Northwest Nazarene, 249 (81-88-80). T42, Drew Lunt, Northwest Nazarene, 249 (85-79-85). T46, Andrew Cortez, Northwest Nazarene, 250 (85-86-79). T46, Justin Higgins, Northwest Nazarene, 250 (86-81-83). 51, Lincoln Olson, Northwest Nazarene, 251 (82-84-85).

SoCal Intercollegiate (Mar. 26-27 at Carlton Oaks GC, Santee, Calif.): Team – 1, Dominican, 871 (284-296-291). 6, Western Washington, 891 (296-297-298). Individuals – 1, Ty Macias, Dominican, 205 (71-66-68). T9, Michael Butler, Western Washington, 221 (71-54-76). T12, Ethan Casto, Western Washington, 223 (77-72-74). T12, Cody Roth, Western Washington, 223 (73-77-73). T29, Adam Barker, Western Washington, 228 (75-78-75). T39, Willy Scholten, Western Washington, 231 (70-80-81).  

Hanny Stanislaus Invitational (April 2-3 at Turlock Golf & CC, Turlock Calif.): Team – 1, Cal Baptist, 871 (291-291-289). 5, Concordia, 886 (306-283-297). Individual – 1, Ben Hallam, Cal Baptist, 212 (72-74-66). T4, Nick Huff, Concordia, 216 (73-71-72). T14, Jaxson Daskalos, Concordia, 221 (79-68-74). T24, Braeden Campbell, Concordia, 224 (78-71-75). 29, Tanner Huddleston, Concordia, 225 (76-73-76). T59, Luke Travins, Concordia, 234 (82-74-78).

Mustang Intercollegiate (April 2-3 at Palm Valley GC, Goodyear, Ariz.): Team – 1, Dixie State, 839 (277-287-275). T3, Western Washington, 845 (284-284-277). 7, Simon Fraser, 851 (284-280-287). 15, Saint Martin’s, 878 (295-295-288). 18, Montana State Billings, 891 (285-306-300). Individual – T1, Nicklaus Britt, Dixie State, 204 (71-70-63). T1, Jack Duguid, Colorado Springs, 204 (67-70-67). T6, Cody Roth, Western Washington, 207 (68-69-70). T8, Brody Bonfilio, Western Washington, 208 (69-68-71). 11, Chris Crisologo, Simon Fraser, 209 (70-68-71). T13, Ethan Casto, Western Washington, 211 (74-73-64). T13, Sy Lovan, Simon Fraser, 211 (70-69-72).

AROUND THE GNAC
CONCORDIA
LAST WEEK: Hanny Stanislaus Invitational, 5th of 13, 886 (306-283-297).
THIS WEEK: April 23-24 at GNAC Championships in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

•Playing its final tournament before the GNAC Championships, Concordia earned a fifth-place finish at the Hanny Stanislaus Invitational on Tuesday. The Cavaliers turned in the best round of the tournament on Monday afternoon as they combined for a 5-under par 283 in the second round.

• Senior Nick Huff led the Cavs in a tie for fourth place by shooting an even-par 216. Huff contributed a 1-under par 71 in the Cavs’ stellar second round and finished the tournament with an even-par 72.

• Sophomore Jaxson Daskalos finished in a tie for 14th place after shooting a 5-over par 221. Daskalos shaved 11 strokes off his first-round scored after carding a team-low 5-under par 68 in the second round. The sophomore finished with a 2-over par 74 to finish three strokes ahead of teammate junior Braeden Campbell.

• Daskalos and Campbell are the only Cavs to play all 21 rounds this season. Playing in just two tournaments this year, junior Isaac Hall leads the team with a 72.2 stroke average while Huff follows with 74.1 strokes per round. Both players also account for Concordia’s three top-10 finishes this year.

• Concordia joins the rest of the conference at the GNAC Championships on April 23-24 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS
LAST WEEK: Mustang Intercollegiate, 18th of 20, 891 (285-306-300).
THIS WEEK: April 16-17 at Yellowjacket Spring Invitational in Billings, Mont.

• One of four GNAC teams participating in the Mustang Intercollegiate earlier this week, Montana State Billings was unable to build off its strong first round as it finished with a 27-over par 891.

• Ending the first round in eighth place, the Yellowjackets were one of three GNAC teams to card lower than a 285. Freshman Caleb Trost led MSUB with a tie for 34th place after finishing with an even-par 216. Despite shooting a 3-over par in the second round, Trost managed a 70 and 71 in his first and third rounds.

• Sophomore Garrett Woodin opened the tournament with a team-low 3-under par 69, eventually finishing with a 4-over par 220. Sophomore Caleb Stetzner ended five strokes behind him with a 9-over par 225.

• Stetzner is eighth in the GNAC with a 74.3 stroke average. Woodin, Trost and freshman Riley Kaercher have each played 20 rounds this season.

• Montana State Billings returns to action on April 16 when it hosts its annual Yellowjacket Spring Invitational in Billings, Mont., at the Lake Hills Golf Course.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE
LAST WEEK: Desert Intercollegiate, 13th of 18, 993 (329-327-337).
THIS WEEK: Idle.

• Northwest Nazarene came away with a 13th-place finish at the Desert Intercollegiate last week Tuesday.

• Sophomore Drew Lunt paced the Nighthawks as he tied for 42nd with a 249 (85-79-85). Scoring as an individual, freshman Tyler Joplin matched Lunt’s scorecard after he shaved eight strokes off his second-round mark to score 8-over par in the final round.

• Freshman Andrew Cortez finished a stroke behind Lunt and Joplin while junior Justin Higgins followed suit by shooting a 250 of his own.

• Higgins, sophomore Henry Bernard and freshman Isaac Emerson lead the Nighthawks with 22 rounds played this season. Among the three, Bernard paces the pack with 77.3 strokes per round.

• The Nighthawks will play their final tournament prior to the GNAC Championships on April 16 at its own NNU Invitational.

SAINT MARTIN’S
LAST WEEK: Mustang Intercollegiate, 15th of 20, 878 (295-295-288).
THIS WEEK: April 23-24 at GNAC Championships, Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

• Shooting a 16-over par in the opening two rounds, Saint Martin’s used a strong finish to edge Northeastern State by three strokes for a 15th place finish.

• One of the biggest contributors to the Saints’ efficient final round was senior Andrew Raab, who carded a 3-under par 69 to close the tournament. He led Saint Martin’s with a 27th place finish at 2-under par 214.

• Freshman Tyler Fitchett was the second-highest Saints placer after he shot back-to-back rounds of 1-under par 71 to close the tournament. He ended in a tie for 44th place at 2-over par 218.

• Junior Trevor Frisby and Raab are the only two Saints to have played in all 24 rounds this season. Frisby paces the Saints with a 74.6 stroke average while Raab lowered his season average to 75.5 strokes per round. Fitchett rounds out SMU’s top three with a 75.6 stroke average.

• Saint Martin’s joins the rest of the conference at the GNAC Championships on April 23-24 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

SIMON FRASER
LAST WEEK: Mustang Intercollegiate, 7th of 20, 851 (284-280-287).
THIS WEEK: April 23-24 at GNAC Championships in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

• Ending the Mustang Intercollegiate at 13-under par 851, Simon Fraser came away with a seventh-place finish on Tuesday. The Clan fired their lowest round of the tournament in the second round, carding an 8-under par 280 to lead all participating teams.

• Crisologo paced the Clan by shooting a 7-under par 209 to finish in 11th place. Crisologo opened the tournament with a 2-under par 70 before closing the first day of action with a 4-under par 68 in the second round.

• Sophomore Sy Lovan tied for 13th place after firing a 5-under par 211 for the tournament. Lovan matched Crisologo’s first-round score before shooting a 3-under par 69 in the second round.

• Leading the GNAC with 70.4 strokes per round, Crisologo has achieved six top-five finishes this season. Lovan is fourth in the GNAC with a 73.4 stroke average while sophomore Scott Kerr is fifth with 74 strokes per round. Kerr finished the Mustang Intercollegiate in a tie for 24th place at 3-under par 213.

• In the latest Golf Coaches Association of America Division II Rankings released on Mar. 30, Simon Fraser is among teams receiving votes with 24.

• Simon Fraser ends the regular season at the GNAC Championships on April 23-24 at Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. In last year’s tournament, Crisologo shot a 5-under 208 to claim the first-place honor.

WESTERN WASHINGTON
LAST WEEK: Mustang Intercollegiate, Tie 3rd of 20, 845 (294-284-277).
THIS WEEK: April 23-24 at GNAC Championships in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

• Butler was named the GNAC Men’s Golf Player of the Week after he led the Vikings to a sixth-place finish at the SoCal Intercollegiate last week. Butler tied for ninth place as he carded a three-round score of 5-over-par 221, which included a low 18-hole score of 71 in the opening round. It was Butler’s fourth consecutive top-20 tournament finish.

• Western Washington led all GNAC teams with a third-place finish at the Mustang Intercollegiate by shooting a 19-under par 845. Heading into the final round eight strokes par, the Vikings shot a tournament-low 11-under par 277 to tie with Colorado Springs.

• Roth played his best golf of the year as he led WWU with a tie for sixth place at 9-under par 207. Roth shot under par in all three rounds, which was highlighted by his 4-under par effort in the opening round.

• Bonfilio continued his impressive inaugural season by placing in a tie for eighth at 8-under par 208. Bonfilio managed a team-low 68 in the second round and earned his fourth top-10 finish of the season. Sophomore Ethan Casto rounded out WWU’s top-three scorers by tying for 13th place at 5-under par 211.

• Bonfilio is third in the GNAC with a 73.3 stroke average. Butler, Casto and Roth have also played a team-high 24 rounds this season. Butler is second on the team with a 74.2 stroke average while Casto is shooting 74.4 strokes per round.

• The Vikings conclude its spring slate at the GNAC Championships on April 23-24 in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Western Washington looks to defend its title as it scored a 19-over par 871 to claim the team honor last year.

THIS WEEK’S GNAC MEN’S GOLF PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Michael Butler (Western Washington, Jr., Sammamish, Wash. – IMG Academy): Butler led the Vikings to a sixth-place finish at the SoCal Intercollegiate. Butler tied for ninth place as he carded a three-round score of 5-over-par 221, which included a low 18-hole score of 71 in the opening round. It was Butler’s fourth consecutive top-20 tournament finish.