The Doug Lange Network 

April 23, 2018

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COEUR d’ALENE, Idaho – Led by four players in the top 15, the Western Washington University men’s golf team is in 2nd place after the first two rounds of the 2018 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships at Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course.
 

The Vikings shot rounds of 287 (+3) and 293 (+9) in the first two rounds, finishing the day at 12-over-par 580. WWU is 14 strokes back of tournament leader Simon Fraser University (-2, 566) and 11 strokes ahead of 3rd-place Concordia (+23, 591).
 

Sophomore Ethan Casto (Snohomish, WA) is tied for 2nd in the 30-player field, turning in a two-round score of even-par 142. The sophomore carded a 4-under-par 67 in the morning round, and then finished with a 4-over-par 75 in the afternoon. Casto is tied with SFU’s Chris Crisologo, who are both 4 strokes back of individual leader SFU’s Craig Titterington (-4, 71-67=138).
 

Freshman Brody Bonfilio (Boise, ID/Bishop Kelly) bounced back from a first-round 7-over-par 78, shooting a 4-under-par 67 in the afternoon and will enter the final round tied for 6th at 3-over-par 145. Bonfilio’s second round consisted of 7 birdies and 3 bogey’s to match the low score of the afternoon round.
 

“Ethan started strong but ran out of momentum in the afternoon,” said head coach Luke Bennett. “Brody finished like a champ after a rocky start.”
 

Junior Cody Roth (Bellingham, WA) is in 11th place (+6, 73-75=148) and senior Adam Barker (Gig Harbor, WA/Peninsula/Olympic College) is tied for 12th (+7, 73-76=149). Barker leads the field with 10 birdies in the first two rounds of the championships. Junior Michael Butler (Sammamish, WA/Skyline) rounds out the Western contingent tied for 17th place at 8-over-par 150 (74-76).
 

“The rest of the guys had highlights here and there but couldn’t string a whole round together,” added Bennett. “I look for the guys to respond well after a good late night practice session and come out firing tomorrow. The attitudes are great and the team is ready for a low round.”
 

WWU led the field with 34 birdies, and combined to play the four par 5’s at 13-under par.
 

The Vikings are the two-time defending GNAC Tournament champions and have won the event in 8 of the 10 years it has been played. WWU entered the championships ranked No. 8 in the NCAA II West Region, two spots behind No. 6 Simon Fraser.
 

Tuesday’s final round is scheduled to start at 8 am off the first tee, with the Vikings scheduled to start in the second wave at 8:55 am. The final round of the tournament can be followed via the Live Leaderboard at Golfstat.com.

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COEUR d’ALENE, Idaho – Western Washington University junior Hannah Drake shot a 6-over-par 77 in the opening round of the 2018 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Women’s Golf Championships on Monday at the Coeur d’Alene Resort Golf Course.
 

The Vikings are in 3rd place after the first 18 holes of the 36-hole tournament. WWU turned in a 35-over-par team score of 319, 7 strokes back of 2nd-place Concordia (+28, 312) and 17 back of championships leader Simon Fraser (+18, 302). 
 

Drake (Pocatello, ID/Century) is tied for 4th place in the 30-player field. Her 6-over-par 77 was highlighted by a playing the final 10 holes at 1-over-par. She finished her round with 3 birdies to tie for the most by any player in the tournament field.
 

“Hannah had a rough stretch towards the end of her front nine, but battled back and was solid on her finish,” said head coach Bo Stephan. “She turned in a really good round today and I am proud of how she hung tough and didn’t let the round get away from her early on.”
 

Freshman Megan Billeter (Spokane, WA/Mt. Spokane) is in 9th place recording a 8-over-par 79. The freshman was a 4-over-par through the first 15 holes, but finished her round 4-over-par on the final three holes.
 

Senior Jenn Paul (Bellingham, WA) is tied for 10th place at 9-over-par 80. Freshman Katelann Soth (Bonney Lake, WA/Kentwood) is tied for 16th (+12, 83) and junior Annie Leete (Oak Harbor, WA/Eastern Washington) is tied for 28th (+17, 88) to round out the WWU contingent.
 

“We unfortunately had some big numbers and it adds up pretty quickly,” added Stephan. “We have nothing to lose tomorrow and need to keep our foot on the gas and go after it. We just have to stay in the moment. I feel like they are hitting the ball well, just not scoring.”
 

Simon Fraser’s Estee Leung, the Clan’s No. 5 player, leads the tournament firing an even-par 71, with Concordia’s Caitlyn Villatora 3-strokes back (+3, 74) heading into Tuesday’s final round.
 

Tuesday’s final round is scheduled to begin at 7:30 am off the No. 10 tee, with the Vikings starting their tee times at 8:25 am. The final round of the GNAC Championships can be followed via the Live Leaderboard at Golfstat.com.

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WWU Athletics