Golfers finish 5th in tournament

Arizona Daily Wildcat Andy Barnes, junior, finished in a tie for fifth with a four-under 140 at the William H. Tucker Intercollegiate Tournament at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque.

Arizona shot a two-under-par 274 to finish 13 shots behind first-place Georgia Tech.

"Yeah (I was impressed) we shot under par," UA head coach Rick LaRose said of his team's finish. "We just didn't get a good point score. Our number-four and five players didn't shoot that well."

The tournament featured 12 teams ranked in the top 25.

Wildcat junior Andy Barnes finished in a tie for fifth with a four-under 140.

"Barnes is a lot more steady than he was last year," LaRose said. "He played great."

Also finishing in the top 10 for Arizona were senior Rory Sabbatini (7th, 141) and sophomore Derek Gillespie (10th, 142).

LaRose said that the team will be playing for spots in practice this week to solidify the line-up going into their next meet.

The second round of the tournament was rained out, while the third round was "wet and cold," LaRose said. "It was typical Albuquerque weather."

Last season Arizona finished seventh at the tournament, while Georgia Tech finished third.

The Wildcats' next competition is this weekend at the Missouri Bluffs Invitational in St. Louis.