FRESNO, Calif. - The UC San Diego men's golf team moved up a spot in the standings to finish 12th at the Nick Watney Invitational Tuesday.

Freshman Francis Catalano was the top finisher for the Tritons, tying for 36th in the 84-player field.

Fresno State hosted the 14-team tournament at the San Joaquin Country Club.

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HOW IT HAPPENED
UC San Diego shot a 299 Tuesday on the par-71, 7,001-yard course to finish with a three-round total of 899, 47-over par.

Catalano (+9, 222) carded an even-par 71 to blast up the leader board 17 spots. Monday, he had rounds of 79 and 72, which put him tied for 53rd after 36 holes.

Elliot Bunyaviroch (+11, 224) also made a huge jump Tuesday after shooting a 71 to place him in a tie for 44th, 24 spots better than where he was Monday, which was tied for 68th with rounds of 81 and 72.

The 71 by Catalano and Bunyaviroch was the lowest single round score by any Triton during the tourney.

Davis McDowell (+16, 75-76-78--229) tied for 60th, Ethan Chen (+17, 75-76-79--230) tied for 66th, and Ryan Vaughan (+18, 77-74-80--231) tied for 68th.

The Tritons got off to a slow start Monday, carding a 306 (+22) in the opening round. They improved by 12 strokes in the second round, shooting a 294 (+10). The team sat in 13th place after Monday's action.

The winner was Cal State Fullerton with a 7-under par 845. The Titans were the only team to shoot under par Tuesday with a 279 (-5).

Sacramento State placed second as the only other team to finish under par with an 850 (-2).

Ten players finished under par including Sacramento State's Ethan Davidson, the individual medalist. He had rounds of 72, 66, and 68 for a 206 (-7) to win by three strokes. 

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QUOTABLE FROM HEAD COACH FRED HANOVER
We are continuing to improve. 

We did a poor job in the first round then got better and moved up each round.

Francis and Elliot did a good job today as there was wind and the course played tougher.

We will continue to have team qualifying, tournaments, workouts, practice, and mental toughness training and that should lead to steady improvement this year.

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TRITON TIDBITS
• Redshirt freshman Davis McDowell made his collegiate debut at this tournament.
• The Tritons' 294 in the second round was their lowest round of the season thus far.
• There were 84 players in the field, 70 playing for a team and 14 playing as individuals.
• There were seven Big West teams in the field - Cal State Fullerton, CSUN, Hawaii, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC San Diego, and UC Santa Barbara. 
• This was the first time Fresno State had hosted its annual tournament since 2016.
• It was the 57th running of the Nick Watney Invitational, originally called the Fresno State Classic.
• Notable winners of the event include Tom Watson, Craig Stadler, Bobby Clampett, Billy Andrade, Phil Mickelson, and Nick Watney.

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UP NEXT
UC San Diego closes out its fall season at the Bill Cullum Invitational, which runs Oct. 11-12 at The Oaks Club of Valencia in Los Angeles County.

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.