LE SUEUR, Minn. – The Gustavus men's golf team had an impressive showing on the final day of the annual Twin Cities Classic, with highlights for all three Gustie teams competing. For the "A" team, an impressive round moved the Gusties up four spots to finish third in the tournament. For the "B" team, fifth-year
Khrystjan Petersen (Faribault) moved up seven spots in his final round as a Gustie, as he'll be graduating in December. For the "C" team, senior
Caleb McBee (Glendale, Ariz.) collected his first-ever ace on his first hole of the day.
Carleton finished first for the weekend, using a five-under performance in round two to hold at the top of the leaderboard with an 878, narrowly edging out Bethel, who finished second with a three-round 879. The Gusties were three shots behind Bethel in second and four behind Carleton in first, carding a 302-290-290 for the "A" team. The second Gustie team finished fifth overall with an 895, while the final team took 16th with a 971.
The "A" team used strong performances from every member to collect the best round three finish of any team - 10 shots better than first-place Carleton. Three Gusties climbed the leaderboard by double digits at their home course, as
Teddy Kaste (Sr., Apple Valley) moved up 28 spots into seventh,
Chris Gutuza (Jr., Johannesburg, South Africa) moved up 10 into fifth, and
Jack Reinardy (Sr., Andover) upped his standing by 21 for 31st.
Kaste had the best round at Le Sueur Monday, carding a one-under par 69, the only athlete to shoot in the red on the final day. Kaste had four birdies and a three-shot eagle to finish six-over for the weekend. Gutuza and Reinardy both added a three-shot eagle of their own as well, both on hole 16. Gutuza had a birdie and finished with a 72, while Reinardy had three birdies on the day for his round three 73.
Blake Forrest (So., Maple Grove) and
Pelayo Perez Crespo (Jr., Sotogrande, Spain) each had a pair of birdies, with Forrest finishing with a 76 and Perez Crespo a 77 on the day.
The back nine were the place to be for the Gustie "B" team, with 10 of their combined 11 day three birdies coming after hole nine.
Tommy Hiniker (5th, Edina) led the way, finishing ninth with a 72 in round three.
Wyatt Carlson (Jr., Wayzata) who led the Gusties through the first two rounds, took 13th with a pair of birdies for an 80 on Monday.
Aradheea Gawade (Fy., Mumbai India) finished 20th overall, followed by fellow first-year
Jimmy Abdo (Edina), one shot behind on Monday with a 78 to finish 29th. Petersen carded two birdies for a 79 in his final round as a Gustie, taking 60th overall.
"I have yet to come across anyone as passionate about the game of golf, the team, and his teammates," said Head Coach
Scott Moe '95 about Petersen. "He may be the quietest one of the bunch, but he is very thoughtful. KP's dedication to the team is unrivaled. He attended every conference tournament we competed in even though he wasn't always in the lineup. He was there standing next to us on the driving range as we prepared. I know the team meant a lot to him, but he means a lot more to the team. I know after today he will no longer carry the Gustavus bag as a college player, but I hope he will always carry it as a proud alum."
McBee was the story from the start of the day, teeing off on 15 and sinking his first-career hole-in-one. He followed the feat up with a four-shot birdie on 16, and added another on four to post a 74 for the day. McBee finished 45th overall on the weekend.
Cameron Longie (Sr., Hutchinson) took 67th with a round three 81, followed by teammate
Cole Paulson (Jr., Sauk Rapids), who posted an 82.
Tomas Rohrborn (Sr., Santiago, Chile) rounded out the Gustie competitors with a 79 on day three.
"The guys should be extremely proud of their effort and play today in very windy conditions," said Assistant Coach
Randall Stuckey '83. "Our game plan was to not look at Le Sueur Country Club as our home course, rather look at it as a course that we know well. Sometimes when you consider your home course, you press and try to force shots that are not appropriate in competition. The guys did a great job of trusting the process rather than the outcome. We were 10 shots better than the next team so it was a good round. A highlight of the day was,
Caleb McBee hitting a hole-in-one on his first shot of the day. Congratulations to Chris, Teddy, and Tommy for placing in the top 10. Our next challenge is the MIAC Championships next weekend."
The Gusties will begin the 2024 MIAC Championships starting Saturday at Braemar Golf Course in Edina.
