United Athletic Conference

Chicago State's Austin Dobrescu has been named Western Athletic Conference Men's Golfer of the Week for Feb. 20 to Feb. 26.

 

Dobrescu, a senior from Brandon, Manitoba, Canada (Vincent Massey HS), won his first event of the spring, shooting a 2-under-par 214 to earn medalist honors at the Alabama State Spring Kickoff. He was under par for two of his three rounds, using a 1-under-par 70 in the first round and 2-under-par 70 in the second round to build a sizable lead. Finishing with a 1-over-par 73 in the final round, he won the tournament by five strokes. As a team, the Cougars finished fifth with a 68-over-par 932.

 

Other men's nominees: California Baptist's Ben Hallam tied for ninth at the Colin Montgomerie Invitational, firing an even-par 144 to finish three strokes back of the lead … Grand Canyon's Trevor Lampson led the WAC in stroke average on the week, shooting a 3-under-par 213 at the John Burns Intercollegiate … Kansas City's McCain Shellhardt shot a 2-over-par 218 to tie for ninth at the Louisiana Classics in the Roos' spring opener … UT Rio Grande Valley's Alex Summers tied for 13th at the Colin Montgomerie Invitational, shooting a 1-over-par 145 in the rain-shortened event.

 

As the calendar turns to March, three teams will meet up in California as California Baptist, Grand Canyon and Seattle U all head to the Sacramento State Invitational.

 

Grand Canyon holds the top team stroke average at 290.0 through 21 rounds. Kansas City is second at 291.7, followed by UT Rio Grande Valley in third at 293.0.  Individually, Kansas City's McCain Schellhardt has the top stroke average at 71.8 per round. California Baptist's Ben Hallam is second at 72.2, followed by Grand Canyon's Filip Lundell (72.5), NM State's Mike McGilton (72.7) and UT Rio Grande Valley's Alvaro Hernandez (72.9).

 

It's been a winning 2018-19 around the WAC with three times and five individuals earning the top spot in several differnet tournaments. In the fall, NM State won the team title and Mike McGilton won medalist honors at their own Herb Wimberly Intercollegiate. UT Rio Grande Valley took home the team title at the Brooks Invitational, led by medalist Tae Itthiratchia. 

 

The spring has already seen three individual champions as GCU's Filip Lundel won the UC Irvine Invitational, UTRGV's Tennoshin Ogawa won the La Tour Intercollegiate and Chicago State's Austin Dobrescu won the Alabama State Spring Kickoff. The UTRGV men's team also took home the team title at the La Tour Intercollegiate, giving the Vaqueros a pair of wins this season.

 

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.