BANKS, Ore. - The Whitman College men's golf team opened the season with a bang. The Blues led after day 1 and pulled away from the field on the final day to capture the Boxer Invitational title on Sunday afternoon. The tournament was hosted by Pacific (OR) and held at the Quail Valley Golf Course.

The women's team had a fine showing of its own at the same tournament which included an individual title for Cindy Luo. She topped UPS's Kalia Bondawitz by three strokes and finished three over 156. The Blues topped the team leaderboard after day 1 but settled for a solid second-place finish to Whitworth.

"What an amazing accomplishment for Cindy to win her first collegiate tournament," praised head coach Skip Molitor. "Her birdie on the next to the last hole Sunday sealed the deal and I'm guessing this won't be her last victory."

"After Saturday's round, I felt like I could come out and play well and give myself a chance to win," said Luo. "My teammates supported me and fortunately I came out on top."  
Whitman featured three total players in the top 10 including Jack Garnsey who finished fourth (-1, 143) and Parker Krovisky who shot an even par 144 to finish in a tie for eighth.

"This is the first major tournament victory for men's golf in recent memory," said assistant coach Bill Howard. "Sophomore Alex Knox tore through the back nine shooting a 4 under par 32 en route to a 3 under par 69 to finish in solo 2nd place at 141. Junior Jack Garnsey shot a second round 1 under par 71 for a career low 143 total and a career best 4th place finish individually. "The Blues started the day with a one stroke lead over tournament host Pacific and widened the lead to 18 strokes by the end of the day. It was great to see the guys get it going and finish strong on day 2. Our top five players combined to shoot 9 under par on the back nine on day two to secure the team title." 
 
The women's side saw a fourth-place finish as well after Katya Kurkoski shot six strokes better on day 2 to finish 18 over 162. Beatrice Archer and Pavita Sidhu placed in a tie for 13th and 16th, respectively, as all four entries placed in the top 20.
 
Next up for the women's squad is the Culturame Classic on Oct. 2-3 with the men's team competing next Saturday and Sunday at the Linfield Invitational.