SURPRISE, Ariz. - The Warriors battled in their first outing of 2019 at the OUAZ Spring Invitational making a 9-stroke improvement from first round to second, and a 4-stroke change in the final round to finish fifth overall.

"The team has matured a lot emotionally and mentally," head coach in his inaugural season, Matthew Robinson said. He went on to add, "We are continuing to improve as a team and that will really start to show in scores as we put it all together."

The Warriors hit the course for the first time since the fall with a slow start in the opening round shooting a 304. Sophomore Jacob Custodio led the team scoring an impressive 2-under par and tied for sixth overall in the individual race. 

But in true Warrior fashion, the team continued to battle through the second round improving to a final score of 294, a 9-stroke differential with room to continue to improve in the final day and final round. In the second round, junior Dominic Salamone matched Custodio's first-round finish with his own 70 finish, 2-under par, taking 8 strokes off his first-round finish. Right behind was Hunter Newlin who came out with a 72, improving himself by 5 strokes. 

Robinson commented on the final day of competition, "In the final round the course played more difficult than the previous, but the guys adapted to the conditions and shot our best round as a team."

The Warriors finished the day with a team score of 290, for an overall three-round finish of 895 for fifth place. Custodio led the Warriors with a final 216 (70-76-70) tied for sixth overall, while Newlin (77-72-72) and Salamone (78-70-74) finished neck-and-neck with a respective 221 and 222.

The Warriors will continue their spring schedule in two weeks as they head back to Arizona for the ACU Spring Invitational on February 10th.
   
William Jessup University is a member of the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and the Golden State Athletic Conference (GSAC). For additional information regarding Jessup Athletics, visit www.jessupathletics.com; visit www.jessup.edu for more information on William Jessup University. Follow Jessup Athletics on social media: William Jessup University Athletics (Facebook) and @JessupAthletics (Twitter, Instagram, and Snapchat).