FORT COLLINS, Colo. - The UC San Diego men's golf team finished 13th at the Ram Masters Invitational as the tournament wrapped up Tuesday.

Colorado State hosted the 16-team event at the Fort Collins Country Club, about 65 miles north of Denver. 

The Tritons finished with a three-round total of 946, 106-over par on the par-70, 7,234-yard course. Monday, they shot rounds of 324 and 323 in windy conditions. Tuesday, they concluded play with a 299 in much fairer weather.

UC San Diego, which was 13th after Monday's rounds as well, finished in front of Air Force, Northern Iowa, and Utah State.

It was the first fall competition for the Tritons as an NCAA Division I team. The 2020 fall campaign was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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HOW IT HAPPENED
Rocketing up 15 spots in the standings Tuesday, Elliot Bunyaviroch placed in the top-20, finishing in a tie for 19th. He shot an even-par 70 to go along with Monday's rounds of 79 and 81 for a 230 (+20) total. His 70 was the lowest round by any Triton during the tournament.

Ryan Vaughan (81-79-79--239) tied for 46th, Jared Gross (85-84-73--242) tied for 62nd, and Jerry Wu (82-79-82--243) and freshman Francis Catalano (82-84-77--243) tied for 69th. 

Host Colorado State won the tourney for the seventh-consecutive year. The Rams shot a 5-under 275 in Tuesday's final round to finish with a 901 (+61). They were the lone team to post an under-par round over the two days.

The University of the Pacific was eight strokes back (+69) in second place. Sacramento State and Utah Valley tied for third at 920 (+80).

Winning the individual title by four strokes was Northern Colorado's Jack Castiglia. He totaled a 216 (+6) with rounds of 73, 71, and 72.

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WHAT HEAD COACH FRED HANOVER HAS TO SAY
Monday had the toughest conditions I've experienced as a coach. Very windy and cold with a tough course setup. We didn't do a good job adjusting, but it was the same for everyone and it's only one tournament, so we'll get better conditions in the future. 

Today, we did a little better.

Hopefully, the guys learned the importance of course management, especially in adverse weather. 

We play next week in Fresno, so I'm hoping we will take what we learned and improve.

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TRITON TIDBITS
• Freshman Francis Catalano made his collegiate debut.
• It was the first collegiate tournament for Elliot Bunyaviroch since Feb. 9, 2020, at the Orange County Collegiate Classic. The junior took a gap year during the 2020-21 season.

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UP NEXT
UC San Diego travels to the central valley to compete in the Fresno State Invitational. The event runs Sept. 27 and 28 at the San Joaquin Country Club. For the team's complete fall schedule, click here.

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About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program began a new era in 2020 as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions.