Monday morning of the West Region Invitational made for excellent golf weather; mild temperatures and high humidity made for soft greens at Berry Creek. Players could stick it close to the pin comfortably in the first round; however, the greens were tricky early on in the tournament, which made putting challenging for some, but those who were able to putt well in the first round set themselves for a successful tournament. 

Sr. Thomas Kuznar was tied for sixth place by the end of the first round shooting a solid -1. Jr. Austin Kelley would join him on the leaderboard at the tie for third with his round of -1. Two strokes behind Kelley and Kuznar was Christian Rodriguez, who carded a 73, good enough to sit him in eighth place. Bryce Stiemert rounded out the top ten for the Pirates with one shot behind Rodriguez for 74. The Pirates sat in second place, tied with Trinity University by the end of the first round. The Pirates shot 295 as a team while the University of Mary-Hardin Baylor took the lead with 291.

The field lit up the second round of play with fourteen players shooting even or better. But it was Rodriguez who topped them all. Rodriguez fired a 65, going seven-under par with zero bogeys and seven birdies on his card. To put in perspective how good his performance was, Rodriguez was the low round of the entire tournament. He also tied the course record and even tied the low individual round in Southwestern Men's golf history. Chrisitan's performance catapulted the Pirates into first place at the end of the second round with a team score of 285.

The Pirates as a team played very consistently in the final round of the tournament. Even for the day, Nicholas Hoisington was the lowest score on the team for the third round. Stiemert also played well, shooting 73 for +1 and his best round for two days. Kuznar and Rodriguez ended their days one shot behind Stiemert for +2. Four of the five Pirates finished +2 or better during the final round for a 54 hole score of 873. The Pirates' consistency and poise and Rodriguez's standout round secured them their first-place finish at the West Region Invitational on their home course, Berry Creek Country Club.

Southwestern Men's Golf will be competing in the SCAC Championships at Vaaler Creek in Blanco, Texas, on Monday, April 18th, and Tuesday, April 19th.