Towner Shoots a Strong Second Round at 78 to Tie for 20th at Culturame Classic

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

CANBY, Ore. -- Lexi Towner (Sr., Chico, CA/Chico HS) from Willamette University shot a solid round of 78 on Sunday, Oct. 6 at the Culturame Classic to finish in a tie for 20th place, as the meet concluded at the Willamette Valley Country Club. Towner, who carded an 89 in the first round, improved by 11 strokes on Sunday to complete the tournament at 167. Towner's 78 was one of just 12 rounds under 80 in the second round out of 45 competitors.

Rachel Drgastin of George Fox University shot 150 during the 36-hole event to take first place by one stroke at 150 (76-74). Drgastin's 74 was the low round of the second day. She was followed on the leaderboard by Stephanie Yu of Pomona-Pitzer, who grabbed second place at 151 (76-75).

Three golfers -- Quincy Beyrouty and Kayle Hunn from host George Fox University, and Abby Euyang from Pomona-Pitzer (Calif.) -- tied for third place at 153. Beyrouty carded 75-78, Hunn shot 73-80, and Euyang shot 78-75. Hunn's 73 on Saturday was the low round of the tournament.

Nicole Nitta of GFU placed sixth at 154 (76-78). Yena Jang of Pomona Pitzer finished seventh with a score of 155 (78-77).

Willamette's lineup included Towner, as well as Analyssa Ruiz (So./Fy., Keizer, OR/Blanchet Catholic School), Kiki Fierstos (So./Fy., Redmond, OR/Redmond HS), Meghan Hook (So./Fy., Sunnyvale, CA/Homestead HS), and Alexis Schwartz (So./Fy., Ontario, OR/Ontario HS). Ruiz shot an overall score of 238 (120-118), while Fierstos carded 256 (128-128). Hook shot 264 (131-133) and Schwartz registered 279 (132-147).

George Fox won the team championship with a score of 610. The Bruins shot 300 in the first round and 310 in the second round. Pomona-Pitzer wqs second, just five strokes behind GFU at 615. The Sagehens trailed by 10 strokes after shooting 310 the first round, but picked up five strokes on Sunday by recording the low score of the day at 305.

California Lutheran University was third in the team standings at 657 (326-331) and was followed by the University of California, Santa Cruz in fourth at 675 (345-330). Whitman College placed fifth at 679 (348-331), with Corban University in sixth at 689 (348-341), Whitworth University in seventh at 693 (344-349), and Willamette in eighth at 925 (468-457).

Willamette is slate to play at the NWC Fall Classic on Saturday, Oct. 12 and Sunday, Oct. 13. The tournament will be hosted by George Fox at the Oregon Golf Association (OGA) Golf Course in Woodburn, Oregon.