Bears' freshmen lead the way in fall's first tournament

VICTOR, Idaho -- In its first tournament of the fall season, the Northern Colorado men's golf team Tuesday shot a final round score of 299 (+11) to finish in seventh place at the Battle at the Tetons.

Overall, the Bears finished with a three-round score of 902 (+38) in what was the first taste of collegiate tournament play for a number of Northern Colorado golfers.

"We didn't play as well as we would have liked as a team over the past couple days," Northern Colorado coach Chuck Scheinost said. "Even though we made some mistakes, I thought there were some bright spots for us, too.

"It was great to see some of our young players step up in their first tournament and play so well. It's always good to have three guys in the top 10 after two rounds."

Individually, a pair of freshmen and a sophomore led the Bears. Freshmen Charlie Mroz and Steven Kupcho both finished in a tie for 12th place with combined scores of 219 (+3). Sophomore Jake Hutton joined the two newcomers in a tie for 12th.

Both Mroz and Kupcho shot the exact same scores in each of the three rounds. The pair of freshmen put together a 1-over par 73 in the first round, an even-par 72 in the second and a 2-over par 74 in the final round.

Hutton shot a 1-under par 71 in the first round, a 1-over par 73 in the second and a 3-over par 75 in the final.

Utah Valley took home the team title after shooting a team-score of 866 (-4). The Wolverines also had the individual medalist honors, as Mason Casper put together a 202 (-8) through the three rounds.

Kevin Collignon finished in a tie for 39th after putting together a three round score of 231 (+15).

Ben Krueger's combined score of 234 (+18) was good for a tie for 46th, while Kyle Fanning finished in a tie for 50th with a 240 (+24).

"It's definitely a long season," Scheinost said. "We have a lot of progress to make, but I really think the guys are excited to show people we can play some golf."

Next up for Northern Colorado is a trip up to Erie, Colo. to play in the Mark Simpson Invitational beginning on Sept. 12.