CORNING, Calif. – A strong rally from the Wildcats came up short against the Pioneers, but not without many positives from the home tournament. The heat cooperated more than it had throughout the first pair of rounds on Monday, but the course continued to pose challenges for the field in the final round.
Chico State did a commendable job putting pressure on Cal State East Bay throughout the final set of 18 holes, but the Pioneers continued to perform late into the round to hold onto the top spot. The winners took home the trophy with a 33-under team score, ahead of the Wildcats at 21-under par; CSU Monterey Bay finished in third at 8-under.
Senior Travis Miller has been finding his stride as of late, taking the individual title with an impressive 13-under tournament and finishing the final round with a strong 67 (-5). Miller started his day birdieing five of the first eight holes, followed by an eagle on the 10th to give him a bit of a cushion throughout the back nine.
Despite a few bogeys on 13, 14, and 16, the senior calmly penciled in a birdie on the final hole to claim his first tournament win of the season.
Naoki Easterday and Alexander LemMon rounded out the home tournament with a score of 69 (-3), boosting the Wildcats impressive final team score. Easterday found his way to the All-Tournament team with an 8-under total tournament score, finishing in fifth. The Portland native nabbed his first top-five finish of the season, while LemMon had a positive finish in 11th.
Finishing in 24th was Ben Mouser, ending the tournament with a 220 (+4), while Cooper Hambrick finished in 39th with a 229 (+13).
The Chico State (B) Team finished in 8th with a score of 902 (+38). Giuliano Kaminski had a solid final round, carding a 71 (-1) to close out the tournament in 16th, while freshman Ethan Allred finished in 26th with 221 (+5).
The Wildcats will close out the fall segment of their schedule in Seaside as they take on the Otter Invitational at Bayonet & Blackhorse Golf Course. The tournament will kick off on October 14th, and the Cats will look to add some points to their west region to start the spring season off on a high note.
