After seeing tourney host Spokane shoot even par on day one of the Bigfoot Invite for a six-shot lead, Bellevue’s men’s golf team took matters into their own hands. They fired a team total of 12 under par on day two and overtook day one leader Spokane for the team title by six shots. The tourney, held Saturday, Oct. 4 at Esmeralda GC and Sunday, Oct. 5 at historic Indian Canyon GC, is the second straight win for the Bellevue men’s golf team.
The Bulldogs had a 12-shot flip of standings: down by six after day one and shooting 12 under to win by six on day two. Taylor Smith fired a 70-69 to lead Bellevue and finished second overall in the individual standings. Chad Hall shot 71-70, Elias Tunison shot 72-68, Jack Strickland shot 74-68, Brady Campbell fired a 73-74 and Max Tuckner had the biggest turnaround from day one to two, shooting a respectable 76 at Esmeralda before going low with a 67 at Indian Canyon. The 272-stroke total on day two is one of the best in the program’s short, but rich, history.
The team was resurrected in 2006 and continues to be one of the top programs in the region. Bryan Stevens, assistant golf professional at Bear Creek Country Club, is the head coach. They have already garnered several team and individual successes. Most notably, former Bulldog Richard Lee starred at the University of Washington and is now on the PGA Tour. The men’s team captured the NWAACC Championship in stunning fashion in 2010 and also has several NCAA division I golfers.
Coach Stevens is pleased with the performance of his players so far. He is confident his team will end the season on a positive note. ”Our team has performed very well this season,” said Stevens. “We won our first tournament, the Skagit Cardinal Classic invitational championship, on Sept. 29. The team looks promising. I hope we can win more trophies this season.”
The Skagit Cardinal Classic was held at Avalon GC in Burlington, WA, in September. The women’s team cruised to a two-stroke win with freshmen Kendra Meeker 88-80 and Meg McMullen 81-88. Dana Fox shot 88-84 to help the Bellevue College women’s team to top second place in Spokane by 46 strokes. Chad Hall, on the men’s team, earned medalist honors and went low on day one, firing a 5-under par 67 on the 6,500 yard track. He bested fellow teammate Taylor Smith by one shot as Smith carded a 4-under par round of 68. Both shot 75 on day two to finish 1-2 in the individual standings. Jack Strickland played consistently both days, shooting 74-74, while Max Tuckner carded a two-day total of 78-76–154 to round out Bellevue’s scoring. This result helped the men’s team to win the Skagit Cardinal Classic.