Feb. 5, 2008

Santa Clara, Calif. -- The Santa Clara men's golf team will begin the spring part of their season this Wednesday in Waikoloa, Hawai'i at the Hilo Invitational. After a six tournament schedule in the fall, the Broncos have five more tournaments in the spring before the WCC Championships.

Competing for Santa Clara in Hawai'i will be Jimmy Cacho, Scott Travers, Kellen Moss, Alex Bon, and Shaun Pienkos. Cacho and Travers have been helping carry the Broncos through the fall season, each playing very well consistently. Moss will be playing in his first tournament as a senior, and was one of the low qualifiers this past week. Bon is back in full strength after an early fall injury, and Pienkos is also rounding into form after a summer surgery. In fact, coach Robert Miller says Pienkos has been the team's best player as of late.

At the end of the fall, Santa Clara hit both ends of the emotional spectrum. A close, second place finish at their own Santa Clara Invitational was followed by a disappointing 15th place finish at the loaded CordeValle Collegiate. Going into the spring, the newly healthy Broncos will look to improve their ranking with a solid spring season. "We have to have a strong push in the spring," said Miller. "We either have to improve our ranking 75-100 places or win conference if we want to make the post-season."

The team will have to start in Hawai'i, where the strong field contains multiple teams in the top 50. The Hilo Invitational begins Wednesday, Feb. 6 with the starters going off in the morning.