Willamette Wins NWC Tournament and Overall Title; Smith is Rookie of the Year
By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
WOODBURN, Ore. -- The Willamette University men's golf team won its fourth consecutive Northwest Conference championship and its 24th NWC title in men's golf after winning the 2023 NWC Tournament at the Oregon Golf Association (OGA) Golf Course on Saturday, April 22 and Sunday, April 23. Willamette won the NWC Tournament with a 36-hole score of 584, as the Bearcats earned a two-stroke margin over Whitman College, which finished second at 586.
Oliver Smith (Fy., San Jose, CA/Pioneer HS) of Willamette took third place in the individual standings at the NWC Tournament with a score of 2-under par 142. Smith was chosen as the NWC Men's Golf Rookie of the Year. Andrew Kibbee (Grad., Kenmore, WA/Bothell HS) was fourth at the NWC Tournament after completing the event with a score of 1-under par 143 for the Bearcats. Alex Weirth (Sr., Port Orchard, WA/Crosspoint Academy) of Willamette tied for seventh place at 147.
Willamette also won the overall NWC Championship by taking first place at the NWC Tournament, plus second place at the NWC Fall Classic and third place at the NWC Spring Classic. The NWC used the three tournaments to determine the NWC Championship with the NWC Fall Classic and the NWC Spring Classic worth one-fourth of the title, and the NWC Tournament worth one-half of the title.
By winning the NWC Championship, the Bearcats have received the NWC's automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship. The NCAA Championship will be held May 16-19 at the Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville, Kentucky. Willamette previously competed at the NCAA Men's Golf Championship after winning the NWC Championship in 2018-19, 2020-21, and 2021-22. The NWC did not crown a champion in 2019-20 due to COVID-19. In 2018-19, the NCAA Championship also was held at the Keene Trace Golf Club.
The Bearcats trailed Whitman by one stroke entering the second round of the NWC Tournament. Willamette recorded a team score of 292 for the second consecutive day to finish at 586, while Whitman increased from 291 on Saturday to 295 on Sunday for a total of 286. Linfield University shot 594 (296-298) to secure third place in the tournament. Whitworth University was fourth at 598 (294-304), while Pacific Lutheran University was fifth at 613 (305-308). The University of Puget Sound took sixth place at 625 (312-313), George Fox University was seventh at 627 (313-314), Pacific University placed eighth at 628 (306-322), and Lewis & Clark College was ninth at 672 (334-338).
Tom Hoyne from Whitworth won the individual tournament title with a score of 5-under par 139 (71-68). His round of 68 on Sunday was the low round of the tournament. Hoyne was named NWC Men's Golf Player of the Year. Brenden Borck of George Fox earned second place at 4-under par 140 with rounds of 69 and 71. Smith of Willamette was third after carding rounds of 69 and 73 for his 142. Kibbee's fourth place finish was recorded with scores of 73 and 70 for his 143. Alex Knox of Whitman and Jacob Smissen of Linfield tied for fifth place at 2-over par 146. Both golfers shot 74 in the first round and 72 in the second round.
Weirth and two other golfers tied for seventh place at 147. Weirth shot 72-75, while Sam Pauly of Whitworth shot 74-73 and Jacob Rawley, also from Whitworth, carded 71-76. Linfield golfers Ahron Abraham (76-73) and Riley Lynch (74-75) tied for 10th place at 149.
In addition to Smith, Kibbee, and Weirth, Willamette's team entry included Brock Olson (Fy., Kirkland, WA/Lake Washington HS) and Jack McMullin (Jr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS). Olson shot 152 with rounds of 78 and 74. McMullin finished at 160 with scores of 79 and 81.
Willamette scored 29 points in the final NWC standings, while Whitman placed second with 28 points. Whitworth was third at 25, Linifled placed fourth at 22, with Pacific Lutheran in fifth at 14.5, Puget Sound in sixth at 10.5, George Fox in seventh at 9, Pacific in eighth at 6, and Lewis & Clark in ninth with no points.
Golfers chosen First Team All-NWC were Kibbee from Willamette, along with Hoyne, Pauly, and Rawley of Whitworth, Borck of George Fox, and Knox of Whitman. Second Team All-NWC selections were Weirth and Smith of Willamette, Linfield golfers Smissen and Trevor Price, Oliver Nordberg from Whitworth, and Joshua Cross of Pacific Lutheran.