REBELS, FIORONI FINISH TIED FOR 10TH AT SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS COLLEGIATE
Sophomore Caden Fioroni ends the tournament at 8-under 208
The 2022 Southern Highlands Collegiate concluded Tuesday at Southern Highlands Golf Club (par 72, 7,510 yards) with the final round on a perfect sunny and warm Las Vegas day. The UNLV men’s golf team finished tied for 10th at 6-under 858, while sophomore Caden Fioroni, who shot a 6-under 66 in the second round Monday, was the top Rebel finisher at 8-under 208 to tie for 10th. The competitive field at UNLV’s annual event featured seven of the top 25 teams in the country, including No. 1-ranked Oklahoma.
Junior George Leigh, competing as an individual, had a strong showing at the tournament with three rounds under par (70-69-70) to tie for 13th at 7-under 209. Leigh was one of only three golfers who sank two eagles over the three days. Sophomore Ben Sawaia was the third Rebel to finish under par, tying for 29th at 2-under 214, followed by senior David Rauch in a tie for 44th at 1-over 217. Freshman Aaron Jarvis tied for 57th at 3-over 219, senior Jack Kowlowski, an individual competitor, tied for 60th at 4-over, senior J.J. Gresco took 76th at 11-over 227 and freshman Tommy Kimmel rounded it out in a tie for 79th at 13-over.
The Sooners showed why they are the top-ranked team in the country, completing their wire-to-wire victory with a whopping 38-under 826 after a 12-under 276 final round. No. 5 Pepperdine did its best to catch the leaders, shooting a 15-under 273, the team low Tuesday, but still came up seven strokes short to take second at 31-under. No. 15 Texas took third at 29-under 835, No. 24 Florida took fourth at 20-under and Georgia Tech took fifth at 19-under 845.
Oklahoma’s Patrick Welsh started the day in a three-way tie for first and shot a 5-under 67 to take medalist honors at 14-under 202. An added bonus to the individual title is Welsh has now earned a PGA Tour exemption to compete in the 2022 Shriners Child Open, which will take place Oct. 6-9, 2022, at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas. Five players tied for second at 11-under behind Welch and three more tied for seventh at 9-under.
UP NEXT: The Rebels will have some time off before they return to team action March 18-19 at Arizona’s N.I.T tournament at Omni Tucson National Course.
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