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Oct. 9, 2012

Complete Results

CORNING, Calif. - For the first time in the 20 years that Steve Card has coached the Western Washington University men's golf team, one of his players scored a hole in one during a competitive round. That came Tuesday in the final round at the Chico State Invitational when Craig Crawford (Jr., Stanwood/Highland Christian) aced the par three, 192-yard No.16 hole at Sevillano Links.

Despite the rare moment, the Vikings fell one spot to third in the 16-team tournament, shooting 296 for a 54-hole total of 872. Cal State Stanislaus won with a score of 855 (286) with Cal State Monterey Bay the runner-up just two strokes behind at 864 (288).

The Vikings, ranked No.5 in the latest Golf World/Nike/College Coaches Association of America NCAA Division II Top 25 Poll, were led by Jack Kelly (R-Fr., Snoqualmie/Mount Si), who tied for 15th at 4-over par 220 (75).

All five WWU players finished within three shots of one another.

Crawford (76) and Jake Webb (Sr., Issaquah/Skyline) (72) tied for 18th at 221. Evan Needham (Sr., Lynden/Meridian) (77) and Mark Strickland (So., Mukilteo/Kamiak) (73) tied for 22nd at 222.

"It was another disappointing finish," said Card. "We were close to having a good round and didn't finish it off very well. I'm not sure why this continues to happen, but it's something that we need to address.

"But this one was much easier to swallow than last week (tied for third at Golfweek Invitational). Last week we just lost the tournament and this week we got beat.

"On the bright side, we got to see some new players play. We've now had all eight players on our roster compete. The results have been consistent, no matter the lineup, and it's great to know we have that level of depth." Crawford made his hole in one late in what he described as a somewhat frustrating round.

"It was 190 yards and a little downhill," he said. "I wasn't playing too hot, so I decided to hit a baby cut. It landed 15 feet short of the hole and I was able to watch it trickle in from up on the tee."

"I'm very happy for Craig, it's one of those special moments in golf, Card said. "For him to be able to do it in a tournament competition, that's a pretty cool deal for him. And for me, it's the first time that has happened with one of my players. Ironically, a couple weeks ago, I made the comment about nobody having made a hole in one to one my players. But Craig took care of that, and his folks were here to enjoy the moment with him."

Rob Damschen of Cal State Stanislaus went wire-to-wire for the medalist title, shooting 7-under 209 (74). That was one stroke better than runner-up Mark Geddes of Grand Canyon (71=210). Anton Rosen of CSUMB was third (71=211).

WWU completes the fall portion of its schedule on Oct. 22-23, competing in the CSUMB Invitational,

"That is going to be a huge event for us," said Card. "We have a couple weeks to prepare and it will be important for us to use that time wisely because it will be one of the strongest fields we'll see all year."