By Ron Smith
 
(SAN CLEMENTE, Calif.) Westmont's Kat Bevill shot a two-over 74 in the final round of the Vanguard Invitational to capture fifth place out of a field of 31. The sophomore dropped four strokes from her previous two rounds of 78 each.
 
"Kat shot the lowest round in her college career," noted Westmont head coach Tom Knecht. "She has always been good, but her game this year has vastly improved over her first year.
 
"Kat has always hit the ball a long ways - she is one of the longest players in the NAIA. Over the off-season, she has taken her game to a whole new level. She drove a par four with her three wood, which is amazing. Her short game has been spot on and she is making her way around the course a whole lot better."
 
Bevill ended the 54-hole tournament at 14-over with a score of 230 strokes. She had three birdies on the day: one on the par-five third hole, one on the par-four fifth hole and one on the par-four 15th hole.
 
"Drew Thompson also played well today," added Knecht. "She had a couple of birdies and a really solid round."
 
Thompson dropped eight strokes off her second round on Monday to finish with an 87 on the final circuit. She birdied the par-four second hole and par-four 13th hole.
 
"Overall, we played much better today than the first two rounds," assessed Knecht. "We were significantly better top to bottom. I think every player improved.
 
"On the men's side, Mason Mancasola, finished eighth," reported Knecht. "He was in the mid to low-70's every round. For a freshman to finish in the top 10 in his first college tournament was an amazing showing."
 
After shooting a 76 and 75 in yesterday's rounds, Mancasola needed just 73 strokes (one over par) for today's 18-holes. He recorded birdies on the par-four first hole and the par-three eighth hole while making just three bogies.
 
"Mason is a solid top-to-bottom player," said Knecht. "There are no glaring weaknesses to his game. He is long off the tee, but he also has a deft touch around the green. He is a very good player and will be for years to come.
 
"I was also impressed with Jared Tran. For a first-year player, he played very well. Tom Ridd and Matt Kenney came back after disappointing rounds one and two and shot in the 70s."
 
Tran shot a two-over 74 in his final round, recording birdies on the par-three 16th hole and the par-four 17th. The freshman finished 21st.
 
Kenney, who was playing as an independent, also tallied a 73 in today's final round. Yesterday, Kenney posted scores of 82 in the first round and 80 in the second.
 
Ridd consistently dropped his score throughout the tournament. After shooting 84 in round one, he posted an 80 in the second round and 75 in the third.
 
The men's team finished fourth out of seven teams, all of which were Golden State Athletic Conference opponents. Coming into the day, Westmont was two strokes behind Hope International for fourth place. Westmont overtook the Royals in the final round, outscoring them by 12 strokes.
 
"I am so proud of the entire team – the way they played, the way they battled today," said Knecht. "After several months of challenging times, for us to come out and play as well as we did, I couldn't be more pleased."