The Highlanders went into the Big West Tournament in Hawaii with some momentum following their second-place finish in Santa Barbara.
However, their momentum only carried the Highlanders so far as they placed eighth overall out of the nine teams that competed in the Big West Tournament. The Hawaii rain didn’t do the team any favors as they struggled with the weather through the duration of the tournament.
The Highlanders bounced back in the second round and showed signs of life in the second round. They scored a 298 as a team, enough to make fourth place in the round, placing behind UC Davis, Long Beach State and Cal State Fullerton.
In the third round, the Highlanders were not as successful with a score of 302, putting them ahead of only Long Beach State and Cal Poly. UCR went from fourth to eighth place. After three rounds of play, Riverside was only ahead of Cal Poly in the standings.
Senior Andrew Spilman led the way for UC Riverside. Spilman shot a 77, 73 and 74, giving him a total score of 224 and eight over par. Out of all the competitors in the tournament, he placed 17th overall.
Among the other Highlanders, junior Tyler Moore finished second best among the UCR squad in the tournament. In the three rounds, Moore scored a 72, 76 and 78. He ended the tournament 10 over par, scoring a 226 in total, finishing in 20th place.
Sophomore Sam He finished the tournament with a final score of 228, placing him in 20th place. Senior Michael Wong from Hong Kong and freshman Matthew Huo both tied for 40th place, each scoring 240 total points.
This wasn’t the conclusion that the Highlanders had in mind going into the Big West Tournament. Spilman had a great season overall but his efforts weren’t enough to carry the Highlanders to a higher finish in the tournament. Next season, UC Riverside will be without Spilman and Wong as they are both set to graduate.
