Bandon, Ore.----- The San Jose State University men's golf team successfully battled the familiar rainy and windy conditions of the Central Oregon coast and overcame a player injury two-thirds of the way through the final round to post its best finish of the season at the Bandon Dunes Championship.
The Spartans tied with Ohio State for third place with a 54-hole total of 884 on the par 72, 6,9564 Bandon Dunes Resort course. San Jose State and #10-ranked SMU, according to GolfStat, had the third best final round team score of 301, which turned out be the team's highest 18-hole figure. That was enough to keep the Spartans in range for the team title on a day when the average score was a tournament high 77.70 strokes per round.
Utah, which shot a 299 for the last 18 holes, won the team championship with an 876. Denver was second at 882. Fresno State was fifth at 886.
"I'm very proud of our boys. They showed a lot of grit today. They welcomed the challenge. They met it with a great attitude. They had a great attitude to the entire experience which made all the difference in the world for us," said San Jose State men's golf head coach John Kennaday, who had hail stones hitting his rainwear during the final round..
The Spartans, who played the final six holes with only four golfers in the five score-four format, also finished ahead of #19-ranked North Carolina State and #32-Oregon. Senior Ben Campbell was forced to withdraw due to an injury after playing 11 holes.
"This team is very close. The first thing that hits everyone is a deep concern for a teammate and his well-being. That plays a bit of a role. It really doesn't change our game plan. Everybody has to do the same thing they've done before. It may take a different level of risk out of it. We just fight on."
San Jose State kept its hopes alive as the only team with two players to match or break par on a final day when there were five individual scores of par 72 or lower.
Senior Kevin Velo had his best finish as a Spartan placing second with a three-under par 213. His final round of two-under par 70 consisted of four birdies and two bogeys. Velo was the only player in the field to post all three rounds of par or better.
"He played brilliantly. He played a brilliant tournament. It was a difficult mental test out there. We saw everything out there. Kevin's approach and fortitude throughout the tournament was as impressive as I've ever seen," Kennaday said about Velo who led the field in par-5 scoring and was tied for eighth in par-4 scoring.
Blake Tomlinson of Utah carried home medalist honors with a 212, one stroke better than Velo. Tomlinson shot a final round 73, which included a birdie on the 18th hole, his final hole of the tournament.
Matt Heitel of the Spartans saved his best for last with an even par 72 to tie for 36th place at 225. He tied for third among the 107 players with his 35 pars for 54 holes.
San Jose State filled out its scorecard with Bryce Wortman's tie for 24th place at 223. His second-round 70 was one of the six rounds of level par or better by the Spartans of the 14 played. Sean Yu tied for 62nd place at 231. Yu led the field in par-3 scoring for the tournament.
Playing as individual entries, Parker Sisk tied for 68th at 232 and Nate Jetter was 105th in the 107-player field at 245.
The Spartans' next tournament is the Duck Invitational with Oregon serving as the host, March 25 & 26.
San Jose State University men's golf
Bandon Dunes Championship
Bandon Dunes Resort course, Bandon, Ore.
6,954 yards, par 72
Final 54-hole results
| Team scores | |
| 1. Utah | 876 |
| 2. Denver | 882 |
| 3. San Jose State | 884 |
| Ohio State | 884 |
| 5. Fresno State | 886 |
| 6. #10-SMU | 887 |
| 7. #19-North Carolina State | 889 |
| 8. Boise State 890 | |
| 9. #32-Oregon | 891 |
| 10. Oregon State | 896 |
| 11. South Carolina State Update | 897 |
| 12. North Carolina Wilmington | 901 |
| 13. Idaho | 912 |
| 14. CSUN | 916 |
| 15. Washington State | 924 |
| 16. Utah Valley | 927 |
| Gonzaga | 927 |
| Top individuals | |
| 1. Blake Tomlinson, Utah | 70-69-73=212 |
| 2. Kevin Velo, San Jose State | 72-71-70=213 |
| 3. Esteban Missura, Denver | 72-67-77=216 |
| Kevin Geniza, Oregon | 73-72-71=216 |
| Tristan Mandur, Utah | 72-69-75=216 |
| More San Jose State scores | |
| 24. Bryce Wortman | 75-70-78=223 |
| 36. Matt Heitel | 75-78-72=225 |
| 62. Sean Yu | 77-73-81=231 |
| 68. Parker Sisk (ind.) | 78-74-80=232 |
| 105. Nate Jetter (ind.) | 80-81-84=245 |
| WD. Ben Campbell | 78-70-wd |
| (ind.) - played as an individual | |
| WD - withdrew |