KINGSBURG, Calif. — Casey Leebrick capped off his best 54-hole total in his career by shooting 69 in the final round of the Nick Watney Invitational on Tuesday at Kings River Golf and Country Club. Leebrick finished the tournament shooting 67-70-69-206 to place seventh. His 54-hole total bettered his previous low of 209 which came at the Golfweek Conference Challenge in September of 2019.

Leebrick opened play on Tuesday with a birdie on the par-4 13th but was even through three holes after a bogey on No. 14 and a par on No. 15. He then eagled the 542-yard, par-5 16th but followed with a double bogey on the par-4 17th to return to even. The senior moved to 3-under with birdies on the par-5 first and third as well as the par-4 fifth. Bogeys on Nos. 6 and 9 slowed his momentum before he closed with pars on 10 and 11 and a birdie on the par-3 12th.

Riley Bell ranked second on the team in the third round and finished tied for 71st after shooting 77-73-73-223. Bell got off to a quick start in the third round with three birdies and a bogey over his first six holes to leave him at 2-under. A quintuple bogey on the par-4 fifth moved him to 3-over but he was able to recover and play his final nine holes (Nos. 6-14) at 1-under with a birdie on the par-3 ninth.

Joe Fowler also tied for 71st at 71-77-75-223. Fowler's third round was comprised of three birdies and seven bogeys. Freshmen Zach Mate and Gabriel Smith placed 81st and 91st, respectively. Mate had a birdie and six bogeys in the third round. Smith had two birdies, five bogeys, a double bogey and a triple bogey.

Sacramento State was also represented by Coleman Dupre who played as an individual and tied for 76th. Dupre had two birdie, four bogeys and two double bogeys on Tuesday.

Long Beach State was 30-under par as a team to win the tournament by five strokes. The 49ers shot 276-271-275-822 overall. Cal State Fullerton was second (25-under) with Fresno State (22-under), Grand Canyon (21-under) and SeattleU (14-under) completing the top five. Sacramento State placed 14th out of 16 teams with rounds of 290-293-293-876.

The individual championship required a playoff where Ian Gilligan of LBSU topped Cal State Fullerton's Harry Doig on the second hole. Both golfers totaled 199 (14-under) during the 54-holes.

Sacramento State will next compete at the Oregon State Intercollegiate at Trysting Tree GC on Oct. 10-11.

NICK WATNEY INVITATIONAL
Kings River Golf & CC | Kingsburg, Calif.
Par. 71 | 6,623 Yards

Team Standings
1. Long Beach State 286-271-275-822
2. Cal State Fullerton 281-272-274-827
3. Fresno State 277-279-274-830
4. Grand Canyon 280-278-273-831
5. Seattle U 285-286-267-838
6. UC Irvine 286-282-279-847
7. CSUN 290-283-279-847
8. UC Santa Barbara 292-283-280-855
9. Saint Mary's 284-290-282-856
10. Gonzaga 292-284-286-862
11. Pacific 294-292-289-865
T12. UC San Diego 294-287-289-870
T12. UT Arlington 292-289-289-870
14. SACRAMENTO STATE 290-293-293-876
15. California Baptist  292-288-298-878
16. UC Riverside 300-296-294-890

Individual Top Five
T1. Ian Gilligan, LBSU, 66-64-69-199
T1. Harry Doig, CSF, 67-67-65-199
3. Nicky Kling, GCU, 65-68-67-200
4. Matthew Sutherland, FS, 64-71-67-202
5. Isaac Rodea, LBSUm 68-69-66-203

Sacramento State Scores
7. Casey Leebrick 67-70-69-206
T71. Riley Bell 77-73-73-223
T71. Joe Fowler 71-77-75-223
T76. Coleman Dupre 75-72-77-224*
81. Zach Mate 75-74-76-225
91. Gabriel Smith 79-76-79-234
* Competing as an individual