COON RAPIDS, Minn. — For
Gia Puch (Des Plaines, Ill.) and
Tony Hynes (Lino Lakes, Minn.), the timing could not have been better.
Puch picked the ideal time to card her career-best round, as the Saint Mary's University sophomore rifled a seven-over-par 79 to share the individual lead after the opening round of the 54-hole Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Women's Golf Championships.
Following Puch's lead, Hynes recorded his best round of the year, recording a four-over-par 76 and is sitting in 12th place after the first round of the MIAC Men's Golf Championships.
“Gia and Tony played very well,” understated SMU coach Jeff Stangl, whose women are seventh in the team standings, while the Cardinal men are 10th. “It was great to see them put together rounds like that — the timing could not have been better.”
Puch shares the individual lead with St. Thomas' Amy Anderson. The duo are the only two of the 50 women's golfers to record rounds in the 70s, while Gustavus' Katie Schefeld is a shot back at 81 and Taylor Drenttel of Gustavus and Laura Knutson of Carleton are two shots back with opening-round 81s.
Along with Puch — who's 79 is the second-lowest 18-hole score in the program's history — SMU got an 85 from Katelyn Rizzi (Austin, Minn.), a 93 from Brittney Nielsen (Apple Valley, Minn.), a 107 from Jenna Mrozinski (North St. Paul, Minn.) and a 115 from Lauren Ulbrich (Rochester, Minn.).
Gustavus leads the women's team race, scoring 332, nine shots better than runner-up St. Thomas, with Carleton and Saint Benedict tied for third and St. Olaf rounding out the top five.
On the men's side, Hynes' 76 leaves him seven shots off the pace, set by Saint John's Mark Giorgi, who shot a three-under-par 69 to lead Gustavus' Alex Kolquist and A.J. Olson by one shot. The trio are the only players to card rounds under-par, with Saint John's Tony Krogen and St. Thomas' James Stafford adding even-par 72s.
Along with Hynes' 76, SMU got 85s from Rob Klein (Lake Bluff, Ill.), Ethan Austin () and Ryan Brodd (Woodbury, Minn.) and a 94 from D.J. Borgen (Red Wing, Minn.).
Saint John's enters Day 2 as the men's team leader with a 293 score, four shots in front of Gustavus, with St. Thomas, St. Olaf and Macalester rounding out the top five.
