Andres Cuenca wins Wofford Invitational

by Andy Gambill Views: 3

After missing the Furman Invitational on March 23 due to injury, sophomore Andres Cuenca returned with a vengeance at the Wofford Invitational. Cuenca shot a three-round 208 to finish eight-under par and win the tournament. The win was Cuenca’s first of his career. Overall, Western Carolina would finish fifth in the 14-team tournament with a score of 873 to finish nine-over par. The Catamounts tied with Samford University and finished 16 strokes behind tournament winner Elon University. WCU beat out South Carolina, Winthrop, and last-place Appalachian State. The Cats finished 42 strokes ahead of the Mountaineers. Cuenca led the charge as he put up some amazing statistics. The 208 ties the second-lowest 54-hole score in school history. The eight-under par was the seventh-lowest score in Wofford Invitational history and the lowest score since 2002 when Steve Marino of Virginia shot a nine-under par. Cuenca shot a 70 on day one and improved by four strokes to 66 on day two. A final round even-par 72 would wrap up the win for the transfer from Spain. Junior Matt Cook also turned in one of his best performances of the year as he finished tied for seventh. Cook shot a three-round score of 213 to finish five strokes behind Cuenca. Cook opened the tourney with a 68 before firing a 73 and 72 on the last two rounds. The other finishers for Western were Ricky Stout, Tripp Morrow, and Patrick Lamb. The freshmen Stout and Lamb turned in solid performances. Stout finished tied for 48th with a 227, while Lamb tied for 63rd with a 231. The senior Morrow finished tied for 58th with a 228. Also competing in the tourney as an individual was freshman Cody Walker. Walker finished 21st as he shot a 219 with three rounds of 73. Had Walker competed for WCU, then the Catamounts would have finished second in the invitational with a score of three-under par. The Catamounts next tournament will be on April 22-24 at the Country Club of South Carolina in Florence, S.C. for the Southern Conference Men’s Golf Championships.