By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

SALEM, Ore. -- Willamette University took second place and Andrew Kibbee (Grad., Kenmore, WA/Bothell HS) of the Bearcats tied for the individual lead, as the Willamette Valley Cup in men's golf ended with the final 18 holes at Creekside Golf Club on Sunday, March 19. Whitworth University won the team title after shooting 290 each day for a 36-hole total of 580.

Kibbee and Jackson Muramoto from Bushnell tied for first place at 139. Muramoto was awarded first place on a scorecard playoff since it was dark when Sunday's round concluded. Kibbee shot a 69 in the first round and a 70 in the second round, while Muramoto carded a 73 in the first round and shot a 66 in the second round. Muramoto's 66 was the low round of the tournament as he moved up from 11th place at the end of the first day.

Whitworth's "A" team claimed first place by three strokes. Willamette's "A" team followed at 583 with rounds of 289 and 294. Bushnell University (Ore.) was third at 594 (297-297) and Southern Oregon University placed fourth at 604 (304-300). The Willamette "A" team's score of 289 in the first round was the low team score for 18 holes.

The Willamette "B" team was fifth with a score of 607 (295-312) and the Whitworth "B" team was sixth at 625 (320-305). The University of Puget Sound took seventh place at 628 (307-321), George Fox University was eighth at 631 (311-320), Pacific University placed ninth at 650 (322-328), and Lewis & Clark College was 10th at 660 (335-325). Corban University did not field a full team.

Following Muramoto and Kibbee on the individual leaderboard was a three-way tie for third place at 144. The trio sharing third were Alex Weirth (Sr., Port Orchard, WA/Crosspoint Academy) of Willamette, plus Jacob Rawley and Sam Pauly from Whitworth. Weirth shot 71-73, while Rawley and Pauly each shot 72-72. Three additional golfers tied for sixth place at 145. They were Ricky Reisner (71-74) from Southern Oregon, Aaron Storem (70-75) from Whitworth, and Caden Stubbs (72-73) from Bushnell.

Jonas Kim of Puget Sound, who began the day tied for the lead with Kibbee at 69, shot a 77 in the second round to finish ninth at 146. Matt Forsyth of SOU and Matthew Durkin from Whitworth tied for 10th place at 147, as Forstyh shot 77-70 and Durkin carded 76-71.

The Willamette "A" team included Kibbee, Weirth, Brock Olson (Fy., Kirkland, WA/Lake Washington HS), Lucas Paul (Fy., Salem, OR/South Salem HS), and Paxton Jones (So., Wellington, NZ/Scots College). Willamette's "B" team featured Jack McMullin (Jr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS), Oliver Smith (Fy., San Jose, CA/Pioneer HS), Riley Lankford (Grad., Pilot Rock, OR/Pilot Rock HS), Carlos Cortes Dequidt (Sr., San Diego, CA/Torrey Pines HS), and Hogan Smith (Jr., Prineville, OR/Crook County HS).

Kibbee's 139 and Weirth's 144 led the Willamette "A" team. Olson carded a score of 148 (74-74) to tie for 11th place out of 61 golfers, while Paul shot 152 (75-77) to place 20th, and Jones completed the tournament at 157 (77-80).

For the Willamette "B" team, McMullin and Oliver Smith each carded 149 for a two-way tie at 14th place. McMullin shot 72-77 and Smith shot 74-75. Lankford placed 16th at 150 with rounds of 71 and 79. Cortes Dequidt shot 159 (78-81) and Hogan Smith shot 172 (88-84).

Connor Murphy (Fy., Palm Desert, CA/Xavier College Prep) and Andrew Cerqui (So., Seattle, WA/Bishop Blanchet HS) of Willamette competed as individuals. Murphy finished at 157 (75-82) and Cerqui's total was 164 (82-82).

Up next for the Bearcats is the Northwest Conference Spring Classic, which will be hosted by Whitworth at the Kalispel Golf and Country Club in Spokane, Washington, on Saturday, April 1 and Sunday, April 2.