SAUK CENTRE, Minn. — The second round has proven to be the better round for the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota men's golf team this season.
And Sunday's Day 2 of the Saint John's Invitational was no different.
Unfortunately, while the Cardinals' second round showing was four shots better than Saturday's opening round, it wasn't enough to gain any ground on the field, as Saint Mary's finished 18th with a team score of 690.
St. Thomas brought home the team title, shooting a 609 (308-301) to edge host Saint John's by three strokes. Nebraska Wesleyan finished third (614), with Bethel (616) and UW-Stout (619) rounding out the top five.
For the second round in a row,
Blake Westerberg (Red Wing, Minn.) led the way for the Cardinals, shooting an 83 over the par-72 Greystone GC layout to give the junior a 167 36-hole total (84-83).
Brett Jackson (Edmonton, Alberta) added an 84 to his opening 86 for a 170 total, followed by
Connor Brandt (Woodbury, Minn. / 89-86—175),
Hunter Rau (Plainview, Minn. / 88-90—178) and
Hudson Stensgard (Rushford, Minn. / 92-91—183.).
Alex Kapraun of St. Thomas captured medalist honors, firing rounds of 74-69 for a one-under 143 total. Ned Rohrbach of Carleton was a shot back at 144, followed by Nebraska Wesleyan's Hayden Thomson (76-74—150), and Saint John's Drew Lynch (76-74—150) and Morgan Rask (75-75—150).
The Cardinals are now off until Oct. 4-5-6, when they travel to Bunker Hills Golf Course in Coon Rapids, Minn., for the 54-hole season-ending Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships.
