Despite the blustery conditions at Oak Valley Golf Course, the Stags and Athenas of Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges muscled their way to a dual championship on Tuesday, prevailing over the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference foes from the University of Redlands in both standings. With most players hitting well above their previous rounds, the Stags held off a charging Bulldog team in the final few holes with a final-day tally of 321 for a tournament total of 903. The Athenas came off the course as the only team to shoot below 1,000 for the event, scoring 350 on the last round to earn a 13-stroke overall advantage on the Maroon and Gray.
For the women, Redlands’ Dalton Meade fired off a round-best score of 84 to secure the medalist honors with a three-day total of 243. She prevailed over Katie Park from Occidental College and CMS’ Shaina Raskin, who tied for second just one stroke back. Meade recorded four birdies and 27 pars over three rounds, while Park led the competitive field with 31 pars.
Pomona-Pitzer Colleges’ Jen Kim also made a run at the individual title with her tournament score of 256, just three off of the lead.
After the competition, Redlands’ Raquel Gordon was named the Freshman of the Year for SCIAC Women’s Golf. She served as the Bulldogs’ No. 2 scorer during the 54-hole championship tournament, registering scores of 81-80-90 for 251, which tied her for eighth overall.
To determine the SCIAC Champion, all seven rounds are counted in an aggregate score of the season. In the overall conference standings, CMS put together a total of 2,242, while Redlands finished at 2,301. Cal Lutheran University completed the top three, just 19 strokes off of the Bulldogs.
View the complete women’s standings.
For the men, Brad Shigezawa made his competitive return a memorable one by taking home medalist honors with a final round of 75 for a 54-hole total of 212 for minus four. He shot minus eight on the par fives while knocking in 16 birdies, which was twice as many as the next-best competitor.
Redlands’ Bobby Holden pushed Shigezawa during the front nine, gaining three strokes on the leader with steady play. Holden finished the day in second place, with a three-round total of 222 after signing Tuesday’s scorecard at 77. He recorded 35 pars to lead the Maroon and Gray while shooting minus two on the par fives to rank third among the field.
Alec Spencer shined for the University of La Verne, as he finished third in the final standings for the tournament. Despite putting together an 83 during the windy round, he completed the event just one stroke behind Holden at 223.
After the final hole, Spencer was named the 2014 Ken Sherman Freshman of the Year, while ULV’s Keven Holliday took home the Jesse Clark Award.
In the overall SCIAC standings, CMS earned a seven-round total of 2,063 to win its 10th overall title by six strokes. A charging Redlands (2,069) team made up significant ground on the final day, pushing past La Verne (2,070) in the final standings to take second overall.
View the complete men’s standings.
With their first title since 1995, the CMS Stags earn the automatic qualification to the NCAA Division III Championships. Redlands and La Verne must wait out the announcement and hope for an at-large bid.