SANTA CRUZ, California – Dylan Menante became the first Pepperdine golfer to win back-to-back tournaments in more than 28 years, as he captured the Western Intercollegiate on Wednesday afternoon by three shots.
As a team, the Waves settled for second place by the narrowest of margins, finishing one stroke behind Texas. Pepperdine recorded a three-day total of 1,076 (370-361-345) at the play-six, count-five event being held at the par-70 Pasatiempo Golf Club.
Menante became the second straight Wave to receive the famed blue jacket given to the winner at the Western Intercollegiate, as
Joe Highsmith was the medalist last year. Menante won his first college title the last time out at the Valspar Collegiate Invitational in late March. The last Wave to win twice in a row was Kevin Marsh in the fall of 1993.
PLAYER SCORES
- Junior Dylan Menante (Carlsbad, Calif./Sage Creek HS) was the only player in the field to finish below-par and had a 1-under 209 (70-72-67). He began the round tied for second but three shots out of the lead. Birdies on 4, 8 and 9 put him into first place. His only miscue came on 10 with a double-bogey, which dropped him out of the lead. But he came back quickly with birdies on 11 and 13 to get back to 3-under. He closed out his round with five straight pars while his closest competitors ran into trouble down the stretch.
- Senior Derek Hitchner (Minneapolis, Minn./The Blake School) finished in a tie for seventh place at 214 (73-74-67). His 3-under 67 today included birdies on 5, 6 and 9, and he had zero bogeys on the day.
- Junior William Mouw (Chino, Calif./Ontario Christian HS) tied for 13th at 216 (76-69-71). He had three birdies in a five-hole stretch on the front nine.
- Senior Joe Highsmith (Lakewood, Wash./Bellarmine Prep) tied for 22nd at 219 (73-73-73). He posted three birdies in the final round.
- Senior Joey Vrzich (El Cajon, Calif./Christian HS/Nevada) tied for 36th at 224 (78-73-73). He had four birdies on Wednesday.
- Freshman Ian Maspat (San Diego, Calif./Scripps Ranch HS) tied for 58th at 228 (83-78-67). His 3-under 67 today included six birdies, three on the front nine and three on the back nine.
QUOTABLE
Dylan Menante said: "This week was one of the toughest challenges of golf that I've ever played with greens, slopes, and an Alister MacKenzie design up to 4 to 5 degrees. There aren't many flat spots. And with the wind and potential rain in the first round it was quite a challenge ... It sets me up so greatly, so much confidence. Going into conference, regionals, nationals, it gives us such a better opportunity to win and repeat again."
UP NEXT
The West Coast Conference Championships will be held Thursday-Saturday, April 28-30, at Reflection Bay Golf Club in Henderson, Nevada. Pepperdine has won three consecutive WCC titles and a league-best 21 overall.
THE NUMBERS
Team Scores: 1. Texas 1,075;
2. Pepperdine 1,076; 3. Washington 1,091; 4. San Diego State 1,092; 5. BYU 1,097; 6. Oregon 1,101; 7. California 1,116; T8. Colorado State 1,117; T8. Arizona 1,117; 10. San Jose State 1,119; 11. USC 1,129; T12. Stanford 1,135; T12. UC Irvine 1,135; 14. Hawai'i 1,174.
Top Individuals: 1. Dylan Menante (Pepperdine) 209; T2. Carson Lundell (BYU) 212; T2. Pierceson Coody (Texas) 212; T2. Rasmus Hjelm (Colorado State) 212; T5. Chase Sienkiewicz (Arizona) 213; T5. Justin Hastings (San Diego State) 213.
