Finishing At Viking Invitational
9/21/2015 9:23:00 PM | Men's Golf
BELLINGHAM, Wash. – One of California Baptist University's goals set for the new season was to win a tournament before the PacWest Championships begin. The Lancers are in position to do that through 36 holes in their season opener at the Viking Invitational.
Through two rounds, CBU trails Dixie State by seven strokes with a 577. The Lancers carded a one-over-par 287 to lead the 12-team field after round one Monday at the Bellingham Golf and Country Club. It leaves them within striking distance of the 24th-ranked Red Storm at Western Washington's tournament.
"It was a good overall team effort, it was a great start and there's some really good regional teams in the field," Coach John Hackney said. "We are in position to get the win with a good round tomorrow and get the program's first win in the NCAA era."
The Lancers were not high on the leaderboard the whole way. They slipped to fifth place midway through the second round, but rallied and shot six-under on the final six holes to surge back up to second place.
"The big deal was that we really finished well in every round." Hackney said.
It was a great showcase of depth for CBU, as it did not count a score over 73 and did not produce one over 77. All four Lancers finished within eight strokes of each other, and three golfers tied for scoring honors in the second round, as two players carded 72s and the final three all shot 73.
Sophomore Greg Gonzalez led the Lancers by shooting two-under 142, with some great up-and-down play. In the first round, he played the last 15 holes three-under and finished with a two-under 70, and then ended the day with an even-par 72. He stands in fifth place on the individual leaderboard, just two strokes over the individual leaders.
Junior Tai Kuida shot identical 72s to enter the final day with a 144 and in 12th place.
"Tai really came on strong late in each round," Hackney said. "In the first round, he was three-over through five holes and three-under on his last 13. In the second round, he went three-under on his last six holes."
Kavan Eubank, the reigning individual PacWest champion, battled through sickness to card a 145 (72-73) that has him in 18th. Chris Carew is in 22nd with a 146 after posting identical 73s in each round. Christian Sanders bounced back after shooting 77 in the opener with a 73 to end the day.
"It's a short, tight course so keeping it in play off the tee is a premium," Hackney said. "Once you get there it's just trying to hit it close and make birdies."
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