Coming off an impressive third place finish at the Western Washington Univeristy Invitational last month, the Tritons found themselves in fifth place out of 13 teams at the Chico State Wells Fargo Invitational on Oct. 11 and Oct. 12, which took place at Butte Creek Country Club in Chico, Calif.
The Tritons came out firing on all cylinders during the early round on Oct. 11, putting together a team score of 291, their lowest round of the tournament. They came back in the afternoon of Oct. 11 and the morning of Oct. 12 to shoot successive rounds of 298, finishing with a 23-over-par 887, good enough for fifth place.
Cal State Bakersfield came in first place overall, putting together rounds of 285 and 290, respectively, on Oct. 11 and scoring a 291 on Oct. 12 to finish with 866, two over par. Hot on Cal State Bakersfield’s heels was St. Martin’s College, which fell one stroke behind to come in second place with a total of 867 after shooting rounds of 290, 287 and 290.
The University of Hawaii-Hilo rounded out the top three with 874, 10 over par, comprising rounds of 287, 286 and 301. Cal State Stanislaus was the final team to edge out the Tritons, earning fourth place with 877 after rounds of 291, 295 and 291.
UCSD managed to top California Collegiate Athletic Association rival Western Washington University, which had beat the Tritons at the last tournament, as well as Chico State, which UCSD had managed to outscore in their previous engagement as well.
Individually, senior Brian Duckworth continued his leadership role on the Triton team, coming in first for the third of three preseason tournaments. Duckworth shot 217, 1 over par, which was enough to earn him a tie for seventh place. He started things off well on the morning of Oct. 11 with a 4-under-par 68, one of two under-par scores for the team. Duckworth returned in the afternoon to shoot an even par, and then earned a 77 on Oct. 12.
Fellow senior Joe Dolby, the other half of the Tritons’ skilled duo, took second place for UCSD and tied for 12th place overall with his 3-over-par 219. Dolby netted a pair of 74s on Oct. 11 and came back on Oct. 12 to shoot the second of two under-par rounds for the Tritons with a 71.
Sophomore Ryo Yamada, who has put together some impressive preseason play, came in third for the Tritons and tied for 25th in the tournament. His rounds of 72 and 75 on Oct. 11 and 78 on Oct. 12 were enough to give him 225, 9 under par.
Luke Leveillee, also a sophomore, took fourth for UCSD and tied for 31st overall, one stroke behind Yamada with 226, 10 over. Leveillee shot consecutive 77s on Oct. 11 and returned on Oct. 12 to earn an even-par 72.
Senior Jan Godoski completed the squad for the Tritons and finished in 61st place with his 20-over-par 236. Godoski turned in a pair of 78s on Oct. 11 and an 80 on Oct. 12.
The Tritons’ final preseason tournament will take place on Oct. 18 and Oct. 19, when they are scheduled to take part in the Elco Invitational in Bakersfield, Calif.
