Kieran Ripken-
The Gustavus Men’s and Women’s Golf teams traveled beyond state lines this past weekend for a pair of invitationals. The Men’s team competed at the Illinois Wesleyan Invite in Normal, Illinois, and placed 8th overall, carding a 294-305-599; The Women’s team placed 10th overall at the Wash U Invite in Crescent, Missouri, carding a 339-336-675.
This past weekend marked the first tournament since the MIAC Championships in October and the first competition in the spring campaign for both teams.
Sophomore Pelayo Perez Crespo paced the Men’s team over the two days and closed the weekend 73-76-149 (+6). Perez Crespo tied for 25th individually, a performance highlighted by five birdies.
Juniors Jack Reinardy and Teddy Kaste and Sophomore Chris Gutuza were all one shot behind their teammate, ending 150 (+7) over the course of two days. Kaste led the team with nine birdies on the weekend, four of which came on the final day. The trio tied for 33rd.
“I learned a few course management lessons, especially playing with the second place finisher, that I will implement in future tournaments to improve my score and hence my contribution to the team,” Gutuza said.
Sophomore Wyatt Carlson led the charge for the Gustie ‘B’ squad, registering a 152 (+9). Senior Tommy Hiniker posted a team-best 74 on day two, ending the one stroke behind Carlson (+10).
“The team played okay as a whole. We had a good first round and put ourselves in a good spot to finish well, but didn’t play well the second day and didn’t finish how we wanted,” Reinardy said.
“Playing well early is great to set the tone for the rest of the season. Our first round showed us that we are a capable and talented team and that we just need to tidy up a few of our shortcomings to make it to nationals,” Gutuza said.
In Missouri, First-year Riley Zebroski led the Women’s team and placed 17th with an 82-78-160 (+16). In the final round of play, Zebroski leapfrogged eight competitors on the leaderboard and finished the day with a team-best 78.
“I started off a little bit on the rough side with some bogeys and then got more comfortable on the day. It said it was going to be windy, so I definitely had to play smart going into the wind,” Zebroski said. “I knew I was sitting well after the first day and I wanted to shoot better on the second day, so I just played smart. I ended up getting a birdie on the second to last hole and finished out with a par, which was exciting.”
In a similar fashion, Senior captain Annika Reierson soared ten spots on Sunday, closing the invite tied for 23rd with an 84-79-163.
“My round on Sunday was better and I felt more confident in my swing and my ability to shoot a better score. There were some tough conditions on the course but overall I think I was committed to every shot and I had a better mentality throughout my round,” Reierson said.
“I try to keep a positive mindset out on the course and I think that helps the team feel more at ease and confident. I also like to make sure everyone is having fun when they play and only focus on the things that they can control.”
Sophomore Emily Kolb shot a two-day 176 and First-year Maren Masters was one stroke behind at 177. Sophomore Lauren Hubbart ended the weekend as the top individual finisher for Gustavus at 37th, carding a two-day 168.
“It’s exciting to come out with a bang. We got to make other teams a little bit nervous if we play really well in the first tournament. We want to make an impact because we ended our season a little bit lower in the MIAC than we wanted to and we did have some MIAC schools [at the invite],” Zebroski said.
The Women’s team hopes to carry their momentum into next weekend. The Gusties will be hosting the Gustie Spring Invite at Emerald Greens in Hastings. The event will be held on Saturday, April 13th and Sunday, April 14th.
This weekend, the Men’s second team will be traveling to the Twin Cities for the Augsburg Invite in St. Paul. The event will be held on Saturday, April 13, and Sunday, April 14th at the Keller Golf Course.
Next week, the Men’s team will travel to Memphis, Tennessee for the Rhodes College Cochran Collegiate. The two-day competition will be held on Monday, April 15, and Tuesday, April 16 at the Colonial Country Club. The sun is shining, the snow has melted away, and the Gustie golfers are back in action for their spring season.