Friday, October 29, 2021

Northwest Nazarene freshman Christine Cho recorded a 1-under-par 71 on the final day to finish eighth in the Dennis Rose Intercollegiate in Waimea, Hawaii from Oct. 25-27, leading all GNAC golfers in the 72-woman field.

The Dennis Rose Intercollegiate also marked the return to competition for Simon Fraser’s Estee Leung. Leung, a former GNAC Freshman of the Year and a Second Team All-GNAC honoree in 2018-19, played in her first tournament of the season and finished in a tie for 13th place, four strokes behind Cho and eight strokes ahead of her closest SFU teammate. Simon Fraser finished with a 54-hole team score of 948 to finish eighth, while NNU was tenth with a score of 959 and Saint Martin’s finished 12th at 979.

Northwest Nazarene and Simon Fraser joined Western Washington and Montana State Billings at the Westminster Wasatch Invitational in Utah on Oct. 8-9. The Vikings led the way for the conference, finishing third in a 14-team field with a 36-hole score of 614 on the back of three individual top-10 performances.

A pair of WWU juniors, Megan Billeter and Sarah Shea, tied for seventh after each carding 7-over-par 151 while Claire Moon tied for tenth at 153. Simon Fraser’s Natasha Kozlowski was the top non-Viking GNAC finisher, tying for 15th at 155.

In between, MSU Billings took on Rocky Mountain College from Oct. 16-18 in the Leslie Spalding Cup, an annual exhibition match-play event between the crosstown rivals. The Yellowjackets were victorious 6.5-5.5, retaining the cup for the second straight year.

The fall golf season is now complete. All teams will take a break from competition until the spring. Simon Fraser, Northwest Nazarene and Western Washington will all start back up at the Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout in Hayward, California from Feb. 28-Mar. 1. The GNAC Championships will take place at the Coeur D’Alene Golf Resort from Apr. 19-20.

PREVIOUS TOURNAMENTS

Westminster Wasatch Invitational (Oct. 8-9 at Glenmore Golf Club, South Jordan, Utah): Team - 1, Colorado Christian, 606. 2, Biola, 613. 3, Western Washington, 614. 8, Simon Fraser, 639. 9, Northwest Nazarene, 644. 11, Montana State Billings, 656. Individual - 1, Brady Turnquist, Biola, 146. T-7, Megan Billeter, Western Washington, 151. T-7, Sarah Shea, Western Washington, 151. T-10, Claire Moon, Western Washington, 153. T-15, Natasha Kozlowski, Simon Fraser, 155. T-17, Madison Gridley, Northwest Nazarene, 157. T-21, Christine Cho, Northwest Nazarene, 158. T-21, Hannah Halloway, Northwest Nazarene, 158. T-26, Shirin Anjarwalla, Simon Fraser, 159. T-29, Tierney Messmer, MSU Billings, 160.

Dennis Rose Intercollegiate (Oct. 25-27 at Hapuna Golf Course, Waimea, Hawaii.): Team - 1, Grand Valley State, 889. 2, Biola, 894. 3, Sonoma State, 907. 8, Simon Fraser, 948. 10, Northwest Nazarene, 959. 12, Saint Martin’s, 979. Individual - 1, Brady Turnquist, Biola, 214. 2, Faith Kilgore, Colorado Christian, 216. 3, Lexi Neilsen, Sonoma State, 219. T-8, Christine Cho, Northwest Nazarene, 223. T-13, Estee Leung, Simon Fraser, 227. T-25, Shirin Anjarwalla, Simon Fraser, 235. T-37, Natasha Kozlowski, Simon Fraser, 238. T-39, Hoku Nagamine, Saint Martin’s, 239. T-43, Madison Gridley, Northwest Nazarene, 243. 47, Hannah Halloway, Northwest Nazarene, 245. T-50, Michaela Morris, Saint Martin’s, 247.

AROUND THE GNAC

MONTANA STATE BILLINGS

• Montana State Billings placed 11th at the Westminster Wasatch Invitational with a 36-hole team score of 656, nine strokes behind hosts Westminster (Utah).
• Senior Tierney Messmer led the way for the Yellowjackets, tying for 29th place with a score of 160, helped by a low round of 78.
• Junior Avery Gill and senior Kinsey Irvin were among a pack of players tied for 35th at 162. Irvin had a low round of 79, while Gill carded a low round of 80. Jalen Wagner and Sierra Brubaker wrapped up MSUB’s scorers in 61st and 69th place.
• Sophomore Brennan Larson competed as an individual and finished tied for 66th with a score of 181.
• The Yellowjackets retained the Leslie Spalding Cup, the annual match-play competition between MSUB and Rocky Mountain College, by the slimmest of margins. The teams were even at 1.5 after the four-ball matches on the first day, with Wagner and Larson getting a win and Messmer and Irwin finishing tied with their RMC counterparts. The Yellowjackets distanced themselves in the alternate shot portion of the event, as the duos of Wagner and Gill and Messmer and Irwin winning their matches to allow MSUB to take a 3.5-2.5 lead. The Yellowjackets and Battlin’ Bears split the final day’s six singles matches, as Wagner, Larson and Brubaker got head-to-head wins to give the ‘Jackets a 6.5-5.5 victory and possession of the cup for the second straight year.

NORTHWEST NAZARENE

• One of two GNAC teams to compete at both the Westminster and the Dennis Rose, the Nighthawks finished in ninth in Utah with a 36-hole team score of 644, five strokes behind Simon Fraser. At Dennis Rose, NNU placed 10th with a 54-hole score of 959, 12 strokes ahead of 11th-place Hawaii Pacific.
• At the Westminster Wasatch Invitational, the Nighthawks placed three golfers in between 17th and 21st place. Sophomore Madison Gridley tied for 17th with a score of 157 and a low round of 77. Hannah Halloway also had a low round of 77, eventually finishing one stroke behind at 158 in a tie for 21st with teammate Christine Cho.
• Cho was the star two weeks later in Hawaii. The freshman from Eagle, Idaho finished at 7-over-par 223 over 54 holes, including a 1-under-par 71 in the final round, which was tied for the lowest score of the day. She finished in eighth place and was the top GNAC finisher.
• Cho’s run to the top 10 buoyed NNU, who received two other top-50 finishes from Gridley and Halloway. Gridley shot a 243 with a low round of 79, tying for 43rd. Halloway was two strokes back in 47th with a score of 245.
• Brianna Shervik and Paige Vancil tied for 60th place with scores of 256. Shervik trailed Vancil by eight strokes after two rounds, but shot her tournament low round of 82 on the final day to level with her teammate.

SAINT MARTIN’S

• Saint Martin’s made the trip to Hawaii for the Dennis Rose Intercollegiate, finishing 12th with a 54-hole team score of 979, eight strokes behind Hawaii Pacific.
• Hoku Nagamine was SMU’s top finisher, scoring 239 with a low round of 77. The junior finished tied for 39th.
• Michaela Morris hit her low round of 78 on the final day to finish tied for 50th with a score of 247. Kathryn Crimp finished 52nd, a stroke behind at 248.
• Junior Jada French and senior Katherine Swor were within striking distance of their teammates. French shot a 251 to tie for 55th, and Swor shot 255 to claim a share of 58th place. French hit a low round of 82 while Swor managed a round of 81.

SIMON FRASER

• Simon Fraser recorded a pair of eighth-place team finishes at the Westminster Wasatch Invitational and the Dennis Rose Intercollegiate. At Westminster, SFU carded a 36-hole score of 639, five strokes ahead of Northwest Nazarene. The team followed that up with a 54-hole score of 948 at Dennis Rose, two ahead of ninth-place Hawaii Hilo.
• Sophomore Natasha Kozlowski cracked 80 twice at Westminster, shooting a 78 and a 77 for a score of 155 and a team-high 15th-place finish. Shirin Anjarwalla had the lowest single round by an SFU golfer, carding 76 on the final day, but Anjarwalla finished four strokes behind Kozlowski at 159, good for a share of 26th.
• Simon Fraser celebrated a big addition to their lineup at the Dennis Rose Intercollegiate – senior Estee Leung. Leung has a decorated GNAC resume, being named the Freshman of the Year in 2017-18 and earning Second Team All-GNAC in 2018-19, but she had yet to compete in 2021-22.
• Leung showed she didn’t have any rust, shooting an even-par 72 to finish the second day tied for seventh. Leung faded a bit during the final 18 holes, but finished with an overall score of 227, tying for 13th place and only finishing behind NNU’s Cho among GNAC golfers on the leaderboard.
• Anjarwalla shot a 235 at Dennis Rose, placing in a tie for 27th after finishing the tournament with her low round of 77. Kozlowski was three strokes behind in a tie for 37th, shooting 238 with a low round of 76.

WESTERN WASHINGTON

• Western Washington wrapped up their season with a strong performance at the Westminster Wasatch Invitational, finishing third with a 36-hole team score of 614.
• Sarah Shea and Megan Billeter were neck-and-neck all tournament long. Their cards looked like mirror images of one another, with Shea posting a 77 followed by a 74 and Billeter carding a 74 followed by a 77. The two juniors finished tied for seventh at 7-over-par 151, the best GNAC finishers of the tournament.
• Claire Moon also cracked the top 10 for the Vikings, likewise managing a low round of 74 but finishing two strokes behind at 9-over-par 153 and tying for 10th.
• Jaclyn Yoo and Lina Hattenbach solidified the Vikings’ team podium finish by carding solid scores of 166, highlighted by Yoo’s low round of 78. The pair finished tied for 48th.