By Jacob Norling
April 27, 2021
 
(SURPRISE, Ariz.) Following their first day of conference championship play in program history, the Warriors were back at it on Tuesday for day two of the Golden State Athletic Conference Championships. For the second consecutive day Westmont was faced with favorable conditions in the desert, but only a couple Warriors were able to take advantage.
 
"During the second round no one played particularly great," said Westmont head coach Tom Knecht. "But they battled, which is important to see, and I'm excited to see how they come out tomorrow."
 
The biggest leap in improvement for the Warriors came on the women's side of things when Kat Bevill found her footing, and also a place in the top 10. Bevill, who shot an 86 yesterday, cut six strokes off her round today as she posted an 80. She now finds herself in seventh place with one day to go.
 
Bevill shot nine over on par 4's and 5's during day one, but today completed the 4's and 5's with four less strokes, and utilized a birdie and nine pars to find herself only two strokes outside of the top five.
 
Elsewhere for the women, Mia Jimenez and Drew Thompson both shot a 95 as the two find themselves neck and neck on the leaderboard in 22nd (186) and 23rd (189) respectively. Autumn Jon Bier shot a 107 and remains in 28th place, now tied with Kylie Gunnel of Hope International heading into the final round tomorrow.
 
"Our women's team is holding their own," said Knecht. "Kat played really well today, and finds herself in contention there in seventh place. So to find her in the top 10 shows you she's playing well. For all of them though I'm pleased with the way they're battling."
 
For the men, Trevor White and Mason Mancasola were 12th and 13th on the leaderboard coming into round two, but experienced different outcomes on the course today. Mancasola shot only one stroke worse than yesterday, posting a 78, but slid down four sports to 17th place.
 
White ran into some bad luck as he added six strokes from his previous round, shooting an 82 and sliding down to 22nd. After today's round, White finds himself having shot 12 over on par 3's and 4's through the first two rounds combined.
 
Tom Ridd and Hunter Shumake rounded out the day for Warriors both shooting an 86. For Shumake, he has posted an 86 in both rounds, but for Ridd, he added five strokes to his day one score.
 
"We gave up a little bit of ground on the men's side," said Knecht. "But I'm pleased with the way they battled on the back nine. One of the things you always want to see is your second nine be better than your first. That was generally the case for the guys, so I'm pleased."
 
The Warriors conclude play in their first GSAC Championship Tournament tomorrow, with Shumake and Jon Bier both teeing off at 8:09 AM to start Westmont's day.
 
"My biggest hope for tomorrow is just that they're excited about playing," said Knecht. "I want to see them play with confidence, and not let nerves get to them. I would love for them to come out tomorrow and play like they have nothing to lose."