The men’s and women’s golf teams concluded their season by participating in the first Golden State Athletic Conference Tournament hosted by GSAC in Industry Hills, Calif. on April 25-26. After three rounds, the women finished second of three teams and the men finished fourth of six.
The women's team
Senior Jasmine Rodriguez led the women’s squad, participating in her last tournament after four years at Biola. Rodriguez posted a slow start to the tournament, scoring 89 in the first round followed by 88 in the second. Her last round as an Eagle tied the best score of the tournament at 78 and propelled her up the leaderboard to finish sixth overall.
“In the beginning I thought I would be nervous and put some pressure on myself just because of the fact that it was my last tournament and I wanted to play well,” Rodriguez said. “But during the entire tournament I felt so calm and at peace. I started each hole telling myself that whatever happens, happens and accepted every shot I had either good or bad. It was such a nice way to end my collegiate golf career with my teammates, friends, and family and was by far the most fun I've ever had in a golf tournament.”
Sophomore Sarah Paravia, who overcame an allergic reaction she had to the course all tournament, held the lead for the Eagles after finishing the first round in 83 strokes followed by 85 in the second round. The third round resulted in her highest score at 90, dropping her to 45 over par. Paravia finished eighth on the individual leaderboard.
The women’s team finished above Menlo University by more than one hundred strokes. Arizona Christian University’s squad took away the victory from the tournament. The Firestorm beat Biola by 67 strokes and propelled their top four golfers to claim the top four positions on the individual leaderboard.
“I think this year was just the beginning of a great future for the Biola women's golf team,” Paravia said. “This year we won our first tournament in team history during the fall season and we weren't far off the lead to win this GSAC championship. I am extremely fortunate to have been a part of that history and to be able to leave my mark as a teammate.”
The men's team
The men’s team finished fourth above Menlo and Hope International University. Freshman Kyle McAbee posted the best finish for Biola, finishing 14 over par and 11th on the individual leaderboard. McAbee was followed by freshmen Dominic Ariondo who finished 23 over par and Austin Bishop who finished 24 over.
“The team had been putting in a lot of extra practicing trying to prepare for this tournament,” said senior William Langworthy. “We had a lot of positive feelings going into that first day. I think that we approached the tournament well but just did not execute. That was very disappointing for us.”
TAKING FOURTH
Langworthy finished his four-year career with Biola by shooting 53 over par and finishing 24th overall on the individual leaderboard. He started this season by taking fourth in the ACU Fall Invite, and third in the ERAU Co-Ed Invite.
“It was definitely a little bit sad because I have enjoyed my last four years with the team so much,” Langworthy said. “It did not really hit me that this was my last tournament for Biola until the last few holes of my final round on Tuesday. There were a lot of emotions that were stirred up in me as I walked down that last fairway.”
