United Athletic Conference

NM State's Mike McGilton has been named Western Athletic Conference Men's Golfer of the Month for September.

 

McGilton, a senior from Chandler, Ariz. (Perry HS), averaged just 71.7 strokes through six rounds for the Aggies. In the season-opening Gene Miranda Falcon Invitational, he fired a 5-under-pay 211 to tie for third among 92 golfers. His 5-under-par 67 in the second round is tied for second in the WAC for low rounds on the month. In his second tournament, he was a model of consistency, firing three straight rounds of 1-over-par 73 to finish tied for 32nd at the William H. Tucker Intercollegiate. His 71.7 stroke average in the month of September is over three strokes better than his career average of 74.94.

 

Other men's nominees: California Baptist's Ben Hallam led the Lancers to a pair of top-10 team finishes, tying for seventh at the Eastern Kentucky Intercollegiate and placing eighth at the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational … Grand Canyon's Trevor Lampson tied for 12th at the Northern Intercollegiate and leads the Lopes with a 73.67 stroke average … Seattle U's Nathan Cogswell was the top finisher for the Redhawks in both September tournaments, tying for 25th at the Ram Masters Invitational and finishing 20th at the Husky Invitational … UT Rio Grande Valley's Alvaro Hernandez took sixth at the Battle in the Big Easy to help the Vaqueros tie for third as a team … Utah Valley's Jake Godfrey averaged 74.78 strokes per round in three tournament for the Wolverines.

 

It will be a busy month of October to wrap up the fall portion of the 2018-19 schedule. Among the 11 tournaments WAC schools will compete in, NM State hosts the Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate on Oct. 15-17 and will be joined by California Baptist and UT Rio Grande Valley. Utah Valley and Grand Canyon will both be at the Bill Collum Invitational in Simi Valley, Calif. Four schools head to Las Cruces for the Pepsi Redhawk Invitational, hosted by UTEP, as  Grand Canyon, Kansas City, NM State and UT Rio Grande Valley are all expected to compete. California Baptist and Grand Canyon will meet up at the Visit Stockton Invitational beginning Oct. 25 and Utah Valley and Kansas City will say aloha when they see each other at the Warrior Princeville Makai Invitational in Hawai'i.

 

California Baptist is the newest member of the Western Athletic Conference as the Lancers begin the four-year transition to NCAA Division I. While CBU will not be eligible to compete for the team title until the 2023 WAC Championship, the Lancers will be able to compete as individuals at the WAC Championship. 

 

The 2018 WAC Men's Golf Championship heads to the Pacific Northwest and Oakbrook Golf Club in Lakewood, Wash. Built in 1966, Oakbrook Golf Club features hundreds of oak trees and immaculate turf conditions. In 2012, Oakbrook opened its doors to the public after 56 years of private operations. Ryan Moore, PGA Tour professional and Tacoma native, brings his knowledge of championship golf to Oakbrook Golf Club through Ryan Moore Golf ownership, to continually improve the golf course and elevate the overall guest experience.