BEAUMONT, Calif. — Alec Spencer earned co-medalist honors and No. 21 La Verne men's golf team placed second among some of the top teams in the west at the annual West Cup on March 23-24 at Morongo Golf Club at Tukwet Canyon (par-72).
Spencer shot a three-round score of two-under 214 (71-72-71) and went toe-to-toe with the defending individual national champion Bobby Holden (67-77-70) of Redlands to share the low medalist honors.
The Leopards were in first place after each of the first two rounds but trailed off a bit in the final round to shoot a 31-over 895 (293-303-299) as No. 5 Redlands took home the team crown at +32 (296-301-205=892).
After taking ninth at the Jekyll Island Collegiate Invitational on March 13-15, this is La Verne's second straight strong finish at competitive tournaments which bodes well for the Leopards' chances at a bid to the 2015 NCAA Division National Championships. La Verne finished ahead of three teams ranked above it in the latest GCAA Coaches' Poll.
Kelby Scharmann finished fifth with a five-over 221. He carded a 71 on Monday to get off to a fast start and stayed consistent over the last two rounds as he shot 75 in each.
Trent Twamley finished tied for 18th (76-76-77) and Justin Smith came in tied for 32nd with a core of 19-over 235 (75-81-79). Michael Bonicatto rounded out La Verne's lineup with a 20-over 236 (80-80-76).
Austin Matzaganian (77-82-76=235) tied with Smith in 32nd as an individual. Freshmen Evan Zhang (86-88-73=247) and Andrew Cooper (76-86-87=249) also competed as individuals.
La Verne returns to action at SCIAC No. 2 on April 11-12 at Los Serranos Country Club. La Verne has two SCIAC tournaments and five rounds to make up the ground on first-place Redlands.