STOCKTON, Calif.— Timmy Cavarno and
Luke Wagstaff both posted 1-under par rounds of 71 to lead the Colorado Mesa University Maverick men's golf team to a 1-under team score of 277 on the first day of the NCAA Division II South Central/West Regional Championship tournament on Thursday here at The Reserve at Spanos Park.
The Mavericks are in a four-way tie for sixth place out of 20 squads in the team standings and right in the mix for one of the six available team qualification spots for the national championship which will be awarded on Saturday.
The leaderboard is very tight with nine teams within four shots of the lead, held by Western Washington at 273 (-5). The Mavs are tied with Cal State East Bay, Dallas Baptist and Hawai'i Hilo for the critical final spot and just one shot behind Cal State San Bernardino and Cameron, who are tied for fourth. West Texas A&M (284, -3) is just a shot behind Western Washington in second while Cal State San Marcos is in third at 285 (-3).
Wagstaff made a pair of eagles on the back nine after making four bogeys in a 5-hole stretch on the front side to rally for a solid round that has he and Cavarno tied for 19
th place in the individual standings. Wagstaff eagled the par-4 10
th hole and made a birdie-3 on No. 14 before making another eagle on the par-5 16
th en route to a impressive 4-under back nine score of 32.
Cavarno made five birdies throughout his round, playing the front side at one under and the back at even par.
Meanwhile,
Dylan Everett played the 7,082-yard course in even par with three birdies and three bogeys. He is in a tie for 29
th amongst the 108 players that golfed on Thursday.
Leo Lavalle, making his regional debut, finished with a 1-over par 73 and got off to a solid start with four birdies on the first seven holes before giving all of them back with a bogey on No. 8 and a triple bogey on the ninth. He then made two birdies and three bogeys on the back side and stands in a 40
th place tie.
CMU freshman
Henry Starr finished with a 2-over par 74 and is in a tie for 58
th place in the individual standings but did not figure into the Mavs' team score.
Twenty eight of the players finished under par as San Marcos' Liam Weaver carded bogey free 6-under par score of 66 to open up a 2-stroke lead over the Colorado School of Mines' Lukas Taggart, one of the eight individual players in the field.
Friday's second round will begin at 7:30 a.m. PDT (8:30 a.m. Mountain). The Mavs' stretch of tee times will begin at 11 a.m. PDT (Noon Mountain).
