BORREGO SPRINGS, California – Dylan Bercan charged up the leader board after shooting seven-under in the final round for a No. 3 finish as the Hawai'i Hilo Men's Golf team placed fifth in its return to Division-II action this past week at Cal State San Bernardino's Battle In The Desert at the Rams Hill Golf Club.
Bercan's 65 score matches four other Vulcans golfers for the program's best individual recorded round (Nick Mason 03-04, Nick Mason 04-05, Daniel Kitayama 07-08, Jared Kinoshita 18-19). The British Columbia native moved up 14 spots on the final day with seven birdies and one eagle on a par-5.
Bercan finished four-under, one stroke behind leaders Simon Bjorken (Cal State Monterey Bay) and Mateo Quiroga (Georgia Southwestern).
The Vulcans scored 21-over to place in a four-team tie for No. 5 with Chico State, Cal State San Marcos and Cal State Monterey Bay.
Ben Crinella finished just outside the top 20 of the 80-golfer field, shooting six-over for a tie at No. 25.
Florida Southern placed four of its golfers in the top 20 to land atop the team leader board for the win.
Hawai'i Hilo will be back on the road in two weeks to compete at Cal State East Bay's Tim Tierney Pioneer Shootout (March 11-12) in Alameda, California before wrapping up the regular season with the Hanny Stanislaus Invitational (March 25-26) in Turlock.
Pacific West Conference Championship is set for April 15-17 at Mauna Lani Golf Course.
2024 Battle In The Desert
| NAME |
PLACE |
SCORE |
RD TOTALS |
NOTES |
| D. Bercan |
No. T3 |
-4 |
75–72–65 (212) |
1 Eagle
17 Birdies |
| B. Crinella |
No. T25 |
+6 |
75–74–73 (222) |
1 Eagle
11 Birdies |
| J. Im |
No. T37 |
+9 |
76–74–75 (225) |
5 Birdies |
| N. Gomez |
No. T46 |
+10 |
72–79–75 (226) |
11 Birdies |
| J. Sato |
No. T64 |
+17 |
76–79–78 (233) |
7 Birdies |
2024 Battle In The Desert Team Leaderboard
| TEAM |
TO PAR |
RD SCORES |
TOP SCORER |
| 1. Florida Southern |
+3 |
289–288–293 (870) |
7 – D. Groppuso |
| 2. Georgia Southwestern |
+9 |
287–307–279 (873) |
2 – M. Quiroga |
| 3. Western New Mexico |
+13 |
299–298–280 (877) |
12 – J. Geary |
| 4. Cal State San Bernardino |
+13 |
293–296–288 (877) |
5 – J. Kim |
| 5. Chico State |
+21 |
296–298–291 (885) |
9 – D. Ochoa |
| 5. Hawai'i HIlo |
+21 |
298–299–288 (885) |
3 – D. Bercan |
| 5. Cal State San Marcos |
+21 |
291–303–291 (885) |
3 – A. Rahgozar |
| 5. Cal State Monterey Bay |
+21 |
296–294–295 (885) |
1 – S. Bjorken |
| 9. Cal State East Bay |
+25 |
293–307–289 (889) |
16 – E. Hether |
| 9. Washburn |
+25 |
298–298–293 (889) |
16 – A. Valdivia |
| 11. Sonoma State |
+28 |
310–291–291 (892) |
8 – C. Kroeker |
| 12. Stanislaus State |
+37 |
300–310–291 (901) |
16 – N. Jetton |
| 13. Montana State Billings |
+38 |
297–312–293 (902) |
5 – L. Howell |
| 14. CSU Pueblo |
+40 |
305–300–299 (904) |
30 – J. Nelson |
| 15. Saint Martin's |
+46 |
307–316–287 (910) |
25 – M. Turnquist |
| 16. Cal State Dominguez Hills |
+49 |
309–309–295 (913) |
24 – J. Camarillo |
