FAIRFAX, Calif. – Santa Clara men's golf scored the second-lowest final-round score with an 11-under 273, climbing four spots on the leaderboard to finish fifth at the 15-team Alister MacKenzie Invitational with a 15-under 837 total.
"Everything happened that needed to happen," said head coach Rob Miller in reference to his teams climb into a top-5 placing. "It was a nice comeback by the guys. We started hot on the first nine holes and hung on. Overall, it was a pretty good day."
Fellow WCC member Pepperdine carded a final-round 262 to win the event by 11 strokes over host Cal. The Waves posted a tournament-record 52-under 800.
Three Broncos scored in the 60's on Tuesday to aid in the team's best round of the season. "Pins were challenging today and the wind came up on our last few holes," Miller added. "But we played through it decently and had a pretty good score."
Senior Derek Ackerman and junior Berk Harvey each had a 5-under 66 while freshman Konrad Brauckmeyer shot a 3-under 68. Ackerman climbed 25 spots on the individual leaderboard to finish tied for 22nd at 3-under 210. Harvey rose 30 spots to finish tied for 35th at even-par 213.
Brauckmeyer played 5-under over the last two rounds to overcome his opening 77, taking a share of 41st at 1-over 214.
After blistering the course with a second-round 61, junior Matt McCarty shot a 74 on Tuesday to fall off the pace. He still secured his third top-10 of the season and 10th of his career by tying for seventh-place at 8-under 205. Pepperdine's R.J. Manke won the individual title with a 192 total.
"We haven't played our best but we hung in there," Miller added. "We'll continue to get better as things go and we'll be close to a regional-caliber team."
The Broncos are off from tournament competition until November 5 when they compete in their final fall event of the season at the Saint Mary's Invitational at Poppy Hills in Pebble Beach, Calif.
Santa Clara Final Individual Results
| T7. | Matt McCarty | 70-61-74 = 205 (-8) |
| T22. | Derek Ackerman | 70-74-66 = 210 (-3) |
| T35. | Berk Harvey | 74-73-66 = 213 (E) |
| T41. | Konrad Brauckmeyer | 77-69-68 = 214 (+1) |
| T63. | Nordin van Tilburg | 74-73-73 = 220 (+7) |
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