Long Beach State improved by three strokes in Sunday’s final round of the Peg Barnard Invitational to finish their first tournament of the spring season in eighth place. The 49ers recorded a 315 to finish with a tournament score of 65-over par 633 at the Stanford Golf Course.

Tournament host Stanford claimed the team title with a 596 to edge fellow conference member California (597) by one stroke. The Cardinal carded a final round score of 292, while the Golden Bears finished with a 301.

Noelle Zavaleta led The Beach as she finished with a 79 to tie for 25th for a total of 14-over 156, whileBrenda Chhuor finished second with a 17-over 159 (79-80) to tie for 37th.

Simone Hoey finished with a strong performance as she improved by eight shots for a 76 to finish at 18-over 160 to tie for 39th.

Lindsey McAtee shot an 83 for a two-day total of 161 to tie for 41st and Monica Villareal improved by five shots for an 80 to finish at 165 to tie for 47th.

“Really tough conditions out there as the course is set up for regionals in a few months,” said head coachJoey Cerulle. “We came out of the gate this morning playing really well, until we had an hour and half fog delay and that kind of put us in a funk coming in and we really didn’t respond very well. We played the best we could do and we’ll go back and practice and prepare for our next tournament.”

The 49ers return to action on Mar. 1-3, as they travel to Robinson Ranch Golf Club in Santa Clarita for the Bruin/Wave Invitational hosted by UCLA and Pepperdine. 

Reports From LBSU