The Seattle University men’s golf team continued its solid play in Friday’s second round of the Desert Shootout, moving up into a tie for 10th place heading into the final round of the tournament hosted by the University of Denver at the Palm Valley Golf Club.
Ross Kukula (Ocean Park, Wash.) collected three birdies over the span of five holes midway through the round, but a double-bogey on the sixth hole, his 15th hole of the round, pushed him back into a tie for 25th place at 142 (-2) after shooting even-par 72 in the second round.
Kyle Cornett (Mill Creek, Wash.) earned Seattle U’s best round of the day, earning four birdies against just three bogeys for a score of one-under-par 71, ending up in a tie for 39th place at 145 (+1). Luka Karaula (Zapresic, Croatia) is also tied for 39th place at 145 (+1) after shooting even-par 72 in the second round, starting the day with three straight birdies before concluding the round with three straight bogeys.
Patrick Sato (Bellevue, Wash.) earned two birdies and two bogeys during his first nine holes before shooting par on the final nine holes for a round of 72 and a two-day total of 146 (+2), currently tied for 43rd place. Joe Harvie (Orting, Wash.) earned three birdies over his first six holes, but three bogeys the rest of the way slid him back into a tie for 50th place at 147 (+3) after shooting 72 in the second round.
As a team, Seattle U shot 287 (-1) to move up into a tie for 10th place with BYU at 578 (+2), still within striking distance of teams further up the leaderboard. Kansas shot 272 (-16) for a 36-hole total of 550 (-26), taking a five-stroke lead over host school Denver after two rounds, while Louis Cohen Boyer of Wichita State holds a one stroke lead in the individual standings at 135 (-9).
The third and final round of the Desert Shootout is scheduled for Saturday, March 21, with a 7:30 a.m. shotgun start. The Redhawks will then prepare to host the Redhawk Invitational at Chambers Bay April 6-7.