MOORPARK, Calif. – No. 19/18 Trinity University Men's Golf dominated the two-round, one-day Kingsmen Invitational, hosted by No. 22/22 California Lutheran University, Monday with a two-round 538 (+7) that cleared the field by eight shots by day's end.
The event was condensed from its original two-day schedule due to continued inclement weather forecast in the area. Last weekend's Stag-Hen Invitational in Claremont, Calif. was also altered due to weather conditions for Trinity Men's Tennis.
The Tigers paced the field by 11 strokes in the day's opening round with a 283 (-5) as three of Trinity's four cards finished under par through the first 18 holes. Senior
Daniel Nunez (Los Angeles, Calif. / Loyola) torched the 60-player field with a 66 in the first round that featured a five-under pace over eight par-four pins as he birdied eight times in the opening round.
As attrition took its toll on the field, sophomore
Jacob Mason (Westminster, Colo. / Holy Family) maintained his steady play as he logged one of just three under-par performances in the day's second round, making the sophomore the only player in the field to finish under par in both rounds on the day.
Nunez and Mason finished the day tied atop the leaderboard at 141 (-3) for the tournament. The tiebreaker landed on the better second-round performance, giving the title to Mason as he bested his senior teammate by four shots (71 to 75) in the latter half. Mason has now won both tournaments since the start of 2023, with three tournament titles for the season dating back to the Alamo City Classic in October.
First-year
Neel Sandhu (Southlake, Texas / Carroll) marked the third under-par performance in the day's early round for the Tigers with a 71 (-1). He birdied the final three pins on the back nine after his shotgun start from the 11
th tee box then finished the round with two more birds on the second and sixth, both par-fours. Sandhu finished tied for eighth overall with a 147 (+3).
The Tiger trio combined for 28 birdies on the day, two more than any other complete team in the 11-team field. Junior
Jack McKay (Spring, Texas / Klein Oak)—Trinity's fourth card in both rounds—tallied seven birdies on top of the trio as the Tigers collected 37 overall.
Nunez's six-under performance for the day on par-fours was one of just two players to finish under par from the mid-distance tees, the next closest being a one-under rate from No. 21/32 Pomona-Pitzer Colleges' (CA) John Kim, NCAA III's No. 25 player per GolfStat.com's rankings. For good measure, the Tiger senior marked one of just three eagles in the tournament, needing just three swings to clear the 579-yard par-five fourth.
No. 19/18 Trinity Men's Golf continues its gauntlet schedule Sunday as the Tigers take part in the Texas Cup, hosted by No. 13/13 University of Texas-Dallas at the Sherrill Park Golf Course in Richardson, Texas.
