Women finish tenth at Grand Canyon Invite
The NDSU men’s golf team took home first place in team play at the Dove Mountain Intercollegiate tournament in Marana, Ariz.
The Bison dominated the team leaderboard in the tournament after a crucial second-round 292 helped the Herd edge past a sneaky Valparaiso team. The Bison shot a respective 305 in the first round, a 309 in the third round and finished the tournament with a 906 or 42 over par.
The team was led by Nate Deziel and Jack Johnson. Deziel, who took sixth place, finished ten over par or 226, including a team-best 71 in the second round.
Johnson who trailed Deziel by only two strokes earned seventh place honors after posting a twelve over par 228 in the tournament. A first-round 81 kept Johnson away from a higher place after a team-best 147 in the last two rounds.
Brock Winter tied for tenth place with a 15 over 231. Winter led the team after the first round with a 73 but lost his rhythm in the final two rounds after an 80 and 78. He shared tenth place with Thomas Storbeck from Northern Iowa.
Ian Simonich finished the tournament tied for 18th place with 233 strokes. Simonich remained consistent in the tournament with his event best 77 in the second and 78 in the first and third rounds.
A trio of Bison tied for 18th place with 234 strokes including Gavin Cronkhite, Josh Galvin and Nate Adams. Cronkhite who golfed individually, finished with a 74 in the final round, his best of the tournament. Galvin recovered in the last two rounds after a first-round 81, posted a 78 and 75 to go into eighteenth alongside his teammates. Adams who played a fantastic first and second round for the Bison with a 77 and 72, struggled in the final round after posting an 85.
The Bison will look to continue their success from the tournament and are set to return to the course on March 14 for the Grand Canyon University Invitational in Phoenix.
Women finish tenth in Arizona tournament play
The NDSU women’s golf team tied for tenth place with 902 strokes in the Grand Canyon University Women’s Invitational.
The Bison’s second-round performance of 297 was crucial to the team holding on to its tenth-place finish in the tournament. The team remained consistent throughout the tournament with a 303 in the first and 302 in the final round of play.
Elise Hoven, who golfed individually, tied for 26th place and shot a 223 or seven over par. Hoven had a strong start to her tournament, golfing even after the first round, but a second-round misstep of a 77 troubled her score. She was able to bounce back in the third round with a 74.
Jo Baranczyk led the team with her tie for 34th. Baranczyk shot a nine over par 225, her second round 71 helped earn her a Top 40 bid in the tournament.
Catherine Monty and Lexi Geolat both tied for 46th with a 228 in the event. Both Geolat and Monty were tied after the first two rounds, but a final-round push enabled them to gain fifteen spots up the leaderboard.
Monty was able to regain focus after a first-round fumble of 82, but she finished her last two rounds with tenacity shooting a 72 and 74.
Geolat’s final round 74 was her of best of the tournament, which helped her respond after the second-round “bump in the road” 78.
Leah Skaar tied for 68th with a 16 over par 232. Skaar opened the event with a 77, she had a slight hiccup in the second with an 80 but finished strong after a personal best in the tournament 75.
Maddie Herzog tied for 78th with a 21 over 237. Herzog stayed consistent with a 75 and 76 in the first two rounds, but a difficult third round 86 prevented her from a higher finish.
The Bison will look to learn from the tournament and will be back in action on March 10 at the Pizza Hut Lady Thunderbird Invitational at the Sun Brook Golf Club in St. George, Utah.