Thursday, October 26, 2023
by Thomas Lal

PORTLAND, Ore. – October has been a busy month for the GNAC men’s golf programs, with teams playing tournaments in three states as the fall schedule comes to its conclusion.

Montana State Billings was the only team to play two tournaments in its home state this month, ending its fall slate with a third-place finish at the Beartooth Invitational in Laurel, Mont., on Oct. 1 and 2 before hosting the Yellowjacket Fall Invitational on Oct. 16 and 17 where they went one better to finish second. Meanwhile, Simon Fraser headed to California where it tied for sixth at the Chico State Wildcat Invitational on Oct. 2 and 3 and tied for eighth at the CSU Monterey Bay Otter Invitational on Oct. 16 and 17.

The remainder of the conference’s teams all flew out to the Aloha State to compete in the HPU Sharks Shootout earlier this week. Northwest Nazarene led all GNAC programs at the Sharks Shootout on Monday and Tuesday in 11th place. The Nighthawks will see the Saints and Vikings on the course again on Friday and Saturday for the Dennis Rose Intercollegiate in Waimea, Hawaii to conclude the fall schedule.

ISLAND HOPPING: Northwest Nazarene, Saint Martin’s and Western Washington all opened this week by playing in the HPU Sharks Shootout in Waimea, Hawaii on Monday and Tuesday and will remain on the Big Island for the Dennis Rose Intercollegiate on Friday and Saturday.

Northwest Nazarene led all GNAC teams at the tournament in 11th place with a three-round score of 890. The Nighthawks were 10 strokes ahead of their closest conference competition, Saint Martin’s, in 14th and were seven strokes behind host Hawaii Pacific in 10th.

Freshman Lucas Rynearson was the top golfer from the conference in the tournament, leading NNU in a tie for 28th with a three-round score of 4-over-par 220. Rynearson shot his best round of the tournament to close out the first day, finishing the second round with six birdies and a score of 1-under-par 71. He was followed by senior Grayson Giboney in a tie for 30th and senior Cole Evarts in a tie for 34th. Giboney and Evarts were separated by just one stroke as Giboney carded a score of 221 and Evarts a score of 222.

DON’T BET AGAINST DENBY: Simon Fraser redshirt freshman Denby Carswell has enjoyed a strong start to his debut campaign and earned his second GNAC Golfer of the Week award on Monday after leading all conference golfers at the CSU Monterey Bay Otter Invitational on Oct. 16 and 17 in Seaside, Calif. Carswell notched his second top-10 finish in three events in the Golden State, tying for ninth with a three-round score of 1-under-par 215. He played his best golf down the stretch, carding two rounds of 2-under-par 70 to close out the tournament.

Carswell was also the top finisher for the Red Leafs at the Chico State Wildcat Classic on Oct. 2 and 3 as he led SFU to a tie for sixth place and a three-round team score of 1-under-par 863. Carswell tied for 12th in the tournament with a score of 2-under-par 214. Senior Michael Crisologo followed Carswell in a tie for 17th with a score of even-par 216. Junior Kyle Mayner and freshman Justin Bjornson rounded out the scoring effort for SFU in ties for 25th and 30th, respectively.

The Red Leafs took wins at the SMU Bishop Invitational and the Western Washington Invitational in September ahead of their two most recent tournaments. The Otter Invitational was Simon Fraser’s final tournament of the fall and sees the reigning GNAC Champions heading into the winter break with four top-10 finishes in four events.

BUSY IN BILLINGS: Montana State Billings has played in a pair of tournaments this October, opening the month at the Beartooth Invitational with a third-place finish courtesy of a three-round score of 882 while the MSUB “B” team finished in sixth with a score of 906. The Yellowjackets then closed out their fall slate by finishing second at their own Yellowjacket Fall Invitational on Oct. 16 and 17 with a three-round score of 5-over-par 869 while the “B” team finished seventh with a score of 900.

Senior Lucas Howell was MSUB’s lead golfer at the Beartooth Invitation in Laurel, Mont., where he tied for fourth with a three-round score of even-par 216 while playing as part of the MSUB “B” team. Howell carded two rounds under par in the tournament, opening with a 1-under par 71 before finishing the final round with a 2-under par 70. Fellow senior Liam O’Halloran was the top finisher for MUSB’s highest-placed squad, finishing in a tie for seventh with a score of 2-over-par 218.

At the Yellowjacket Fall Invitational, senior Paul O’Neil and O’Halloran finished in a dead heat, tying for fifth place with scores of even-par 216. O’Neil put together the best round of any MSUB golfer in the tournament in the second round with a 3-under-par 69 in the second round while playing for the MSUB “B” team.

Howell, senior Kevin Kolb and senior Blake Finn rounded out the scoring effort for the Yellowjackets in Billings. Howell tied for 11th with a score of 2-over-par 218 while Kolb was just one stroke behind in 15th with a score of 3-over-par 219. Finn was just one stroke back from Kolb in a tie for 16th with a three-round score of 4-over-par 220.

SAINTS IN THE SUNSHINE: Saint Martin’s has also been busy with a trip to California for the Chico State Wildcat Classic on Oct. 2 and 3 before traveling to Hawaii for the HPU Sharks Shootout on Oct. 23 and 24. The Saints finished in 10th place at the Butte Creek Country Club in Chico, Calif., with a three-round score of 879. They followed that up with 14th place at the Mauna Lani Golf Course with a three-round score of 900.

Junior Carter Sheets was the Saints’ top golfer in California earlier this month, carding a three-round score of 2-over-par 218 to tie for 25th. Senior Max Turnquist was one stroke behind Sheets in a tie for 30th with a score of 3-over-par 219. The pair tied for SMU’s best round of the tournament, a 2-under-par 70, on the first day with Turnquist posting his best score in round one and Sheets matching it in round two. Seniors Kyle Erwin and Chase Gardner capped off the scoring effort for SMU in ties for 43rd and 47th, respectively.

Saint Martin’s efforts in the HPU Sharks Shootout were led by Erwin and Turnquist who both finished as part of a four-way tie for 39th with three-round scores of 7-over-par 223. Turnquist notched the top round between the two with a 1-under-par 71 to end the first day. Sheets and Gardner completed the scoring four for SMU in ties for 43rd and 64th, respectively.

Saint Martin’s will cap off its fall schedule on Friday and Saturday by competing at in the Dennis Rose Intercollegiate at the Hapuna Golf Course in Waimea, Hawaii.

VIKINGS IN WARMER WATERS: Like Northwest Nazarene and Saint Martin’s, Western Washington is in the midst of completing its fall schedule after taking 16th place with a three-round score of 901 in the HPU Sharks Shootout on Monday and Tuesday. The Vikings were led by freshman Nathan Yocam with a three-round score of 7-over-par 223 after carding a final round of 1-over-par 73 to close the tournament.

Junior Seth King was just one stroke behind Yocam, carding a score of 8-over-par 224 to tie for 43rd. Sophomore Peter Dionne-Yarh was the next highest-placed WWU golfer in 1 tie for 64th with a score of 230 followed by junior Matteo Polla four strokes back in a tie for 74th.

Beartooth Invitational (Oct. 1-2 at Laurel Golf Club, Laurel, Mont.) Team – 1, North Idaho College, 856. 3, Montana State Billings, 882. 6, Montana State Billings “B”, 906. Individuals – 1, Josh McCartain, North Idaho College, 205. T-4, Lucas Howell, Montana State Billings “B”, 216. T-7, Liam O’Halloran, Montana State Billings, 218. T-13, Kevin Kolb, Montana State Billings, 222. T-17, Blake Finn, Montana State Billings, 223. T-19, Carson Garner, Montana State Billings, 224.

Chico State Wildcat Classic (Oct. 2-3 at Butte Creek Country Club, Chico, Calif.) Team – 1, Chico State “A”, 850. T-6, Simon Fraser, 863. 10. Saint Martin’s, 879. Individuals – 1, John Kim, Cal State San Bernardino, 204. T-12, Denby Carswell, Simon Fraser, 214. T-17, Michael Crisologo, Simon Fraser, 216. T-25, Kyle Mayner, Simon Fraser, 218. T-25, Carter Sheets, Saint Martin’s, 218. T-30, Justin Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 219. T-30, Max Turnquist, Saint Martin’s, 219. T-39, Bailey Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 222.

CSU Monterey Bay Otter Invitational (Oct. 16-17, Bayonet Golf Course, Seaside, Calif.) Team – 1, Cal State Monterey Bay, 861. T-8, Simon Fraser, 896. Individuals – 1, Liam Allder, Cal State Monterey Bay, 210. T-9, Denby Carswell, Simon Fraser, 215. T-19, Michael Crisologo, Simon Fraser, 219. T-42, Bailey Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 228.  T-63, Justin Bjornson, Simon Fraser, 237. T-63, Kyle Mayner, Simon Fraser, 237.

Yellowjacket Fall Invitational (Oct. 16-17 at Lake Hills Golf Club, Billings, Mont.) Team – 1, Rocky Mountain, 867. 2, Montana State Billings, 869. 7, Montana State Billings “B”, 900. Individuals ­– 1, Tyler Avery, Montana Tech, 209. T-5, Liam O’Halloran, Montana State Billings, 216. T-5, Paul O’Neil, Montana State Billings, “B”, 216. T-11, Lucas Howell, Montana State Billings, 218. 15, Kevin Kolb, Montana State Billings, 219. T-16, Blake Finn, Montana State Billings, 220. T-18, Carson Garner, Montana State Billings, 221. T-18, Jarek Shepard, Montana State Billings “B”, 221.

Southwest Airlines HPU Sharks Shootout (Oct. 23-24, at Mauna Lani Golf Course, Waimea, Hawaii) Team – 1, University of Texas Permian Basin, 853. 11, Northwest Nazarene, 890. 14, Saint Martin’s, 900. 16. Western Washington, 910. Individuals – 1, Francis Bautista, Cal State Dominguez Hills, 207. T-28, Lucas Rynearson, Northwest Nazarene, 220. T-30, Grayson Giboney, Northwest Nazarene, 221. T-34, Cole Evarts, Northwest Nazarene, 222. T-39, Kyle Erwin, Saint Martin’s, 223. T-39, Max Turnquist, Saint Martin’s, 223. T-39, Nathan Yocam, Western Washington, 223. T-43, Carter Sheets, Saint Martin’s, 224. T-43, Seth King, Western Washington, 224.

Oct. 23 GNAC Men's Golf Player of the Week

Denby Carswell, Simon Fraser

The Red Leafs freshman kept his strong fall going at the Cal State Monterey Bay Otter Invitational last week, tying for ninth place among a field of 74 competitors to lead his team. Carswell was the top performer in the GNAC last week, carding a three-round score of 1-under-par 215 (75-70-70) while finishing with back-to-back rounds under par. Carswell ranks third in the GNAC in scoring average at 71.9 strokes per round and has made par or better in five of his nine rounds played in his freshman season.

Also Nominated: Paul O’Neil, Montana State Billings.

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.