SEASIDE, Calif. – Led by sophomore Carlos Briones the Santa Clara men's golf team ended the 19-team Saint Mary's Invitational in a tie for eighth place after today's final round action on the Bayonet Golf Course.
Briones shot a final round 1-over-par 73 and ended the tournament at 4-over (220) missing a top-10 finish by one stroke. He collected the best scores by a Bronco over the last two rounds and finished in a tie for 12th place with six other golfers. "Carlos played well," said head coach Rob Miller. "To tie for 12th in this field was a good finish."
As a team the Broncos shot a final round 299 and missed a top five finish by only four shots. With an 893 total (+29), Santa Clara tied with Florida Gulf Coast, just nine shots behind runner-up Oregon (884). Cal was the runaway winner with a 10-under 854.
"It was a dogfight. It was anybody's game for most of the tournament," Miller added. "Spots two through nine were bunched up and it stayed that way for the entire tournament. It was like a football game where the team with the ball last wins, unfortunately we fumbled at the end."
Senior Scott Lowe was the next highest finisher for Santa Clara placing in a tie for 22nd after a final round 2-over 74. He ended the three rounds with a 6-over 222. "Scott was solid," said Miller. "He looks good and I expect him to be a solid contributor this season."
Drew Miller played his final three holes at 4-over and dropped to a tie for 34th with a final round 77 finishing at 8-over (224). "The last few holes were tough for him," Miller said. "I think he ran out of gas."
Playing as an individual, sophomore Gio Gandionco matched Briones for Santa Clara's low round of the day with a 73 and jumped 29 spots on the leaderboard to finish in a tie for 55th place at 13-over (229). Freshman Evan McLeod scored identical rounds of 75 in the second and third after a first round 77 to finish tied for 48th place at +11 (227). "Evan has shown he can compete at this level," Miller noted.
Freshman Tyler Kertson played his first six holes of the day at 1-under but endured a quadruple bogey on his seventh, the par-4, 393-yard 16th, and couldn't recover. He ended the day with an 82 and finished the tournament at 236 (+20). "We all know he's a good player. It's just a matter of time and his talent will show through," Miller said of Kertson.
"It was a disappointing finish to the tournament, but overall I'm happy with how this young team is progressing," Miller said. "It was fun to be in the mix and know we had a chance."
Saint Mary's Invitational Final Team Standings
1. California 288-282-284 = 854 (-10)
2. Oregon 297-293-294 = 884 (+20)
3. San Diego 304-287-295 = 886 (+22)
4. St. John's 298-291-298 = 887 (+23)
5. St. Mary's 294-294-301 = 889 (+25)
T6. San Francisco 301-288-301 = 890 (+26)
T6. Fresno State 300-294-296 = 890 (+26)
T8. Santa Clara 300-294-299 = 893 (+29)
T8. Florida Gulf Coast 297-295-301 = 893 (+29)
Santa Clara Second Round Individual Results
T12. Carlos Briones 76-71-73 = 220 (+4)
T22. Scott Lowe 72-76-74 = 222 (+6)
T34. Drew Miller 75-72-77 = 224 (+8)
T48. Evan McLeod 77-75-75 = 227 (+11)
T55. Gio Gandionco* 77-79-73 = 229 (+13)
T87. Tyler Kertson 77-77-82 = 236 (+20)
*Played as an individual