Mustangs finish 10th in M-Bay Invite, remain atop T-CAL.
SALINAS – After finishing 10th out of 24 competing teams in Monday’s Monterey Bay Invitational at the Salinas CC, the Gilroy High boys golf team took on league-foes Salinas and North Salinas in Tuesday’s T-CAL action – placing second between the first-place Cowboys and the third-place Vikings at Corral de Tierra CC.
The Mustangs completed their third league tri-meet with a 161 team score behind Salinas (157) and ahead of North Salinas (178). Senior Chad Brownfield as well as senior Matt Lofstrum and senior Ale Rodriguez shared the spotlight with team-low 40s, whil junior Ryan Dinsmore followed with a 41, junior Daniel Perry with a 42, and senior Kevin Moyles with a 48.
“It was a beautiful day (but) we were a little worn out from the six-hour round yesterday. The guys played well, however, Salinas played better,” head coach Eric Kuwada said. “They have home course advantage and this is becoming a factor in much of the league play.
“Most teams that play their home course have an advantage,” the coach added. “However, depending how we play at Eagle Ridge, it has hurt us in the past. Eagle Ridge is not very forgiving and like I said before, ‘you can string along a lot of bogies fast there.'”
Gilroy (4) sits atop the league standings with Hollister (5) creeping up in second, Salinas (5.5) in third, Live Oak (6) in fourth, Palma (6.5) in fifth, and North Salinas (9) in sixth.
“Next week’s matches will be crucial. We play Hollister at Gilroy GC with Live Oak hosting and to do well there will be key,” Kuwada said. “Then we go to Hollister for an All-League, 36-man tournament and how we place there will be important for our league standings. As you can see, it’s anyones ballgame. It will come down to how we play over all the matches.”
In the Monterey Bay Invite, the Mustangs scored a 325 combined to finish in the top half of the 24-team field with De La Salle taking the championship. Palma placed fourth, while Salinas, Hollister and Gilroy all claimed top-10 spots.
Brownfield finished fourth with a 73 to lead the Gilroy charge along with Rodriguez (77), Dinsmore (87), Lofstrom (88), and Moyles (88).
“It was a perfect day, however, the pin positions on the golf course were in some difficult places. This was a good measuring test for the team. We could see where we stood against other T-CAL teams as well as other CCS teams,” Kuwada said. “I think the guys realize they have to work a little harder and maybe we could have a chance at the league title and doing well in the CCS.”
