The 2023 fall season was historic for LMU men’s golf. For the first time in program history, the team won three tournaments in a single season. This happened when they came out victorious at the Kapolei Classic in Hawaii.
Three Lions finished one after another to contribute to this triumphant win. The Lions were led by overall champion sophomore Trevor Algya who had not only come up strong for the team but also recorded his first individual win. Algya finished 72-62-65—199 to come out on top, just behind him was his teammate graduate student Tony Hendricks who finished with 66-66-68—200. Then following Hendricks by a stroke, senior Riley Lewis finished with a solid 65-68-68—201 to contribute to a Lions win.
Following this historic fall season, for the first time ever the LMU men’s golf team received an official Spikemark ranking. From that the Lions are currently ranked #32.
This has brought the Lions well-deserved attention and recognition, and now it’s a matter of if this team can keep it up for the upcoming spring season.
“I believe one of the biggest takeaways from this fall was how good the team chemistry was, as well as everyone having great work ethic which combined for fun and productive team practices and a great environment on and off the golf course.” Junior Alejandro Alonso as he reflected on his biggest takeaways from the season. “You can tell the attitude this year was different. Everyone wants to beat each other while getting better and compete day in and day out.”
That strong team chemistry Alonso spoke on transferred over to the course, as the team is now competing at a level that is higher than they had before.
Senior Riley Lewis wants to continue into next season with strong finishes. “So it’s my final year. I’d like to finish top 15 at least in every event and have a strong season and a strong semester. It’ll be tough but I know I can do it.” Lewis had not only individual goals but goals for the team. “For the team, our goal I’d say is just making it to nationals and winning nationals. Just how we get there though is just keep sticking to our routine, keep sticking to what we’re doing, not get ahead of ourselves.”
Lewis has had a tremendous career at LMU. As a freshman in his first season, he broke the LMU freshman record with a 71.42 stroke average in 36 rounds at every event. This along with numerous other accomplishments earned Lewis the Named WCC Freshman of the Year. Sophomore year, for the second year in a row, he went to the NCAA tournament and earned WCC All-Academic Team Selection, along with many other accolades. Then junior year Lewis won a playoff in the NCAA regional round, then went on to become the first to advance to the NCAA Championships.
So going into this next season Lewis knows his potential, and is ready to lead the team to more victories.
To find more success in the upcoming spring season the Lions cannot hold off on putting in the work. The team will have their first tournament back for the spring season on January 29th and 30th.
“It’s all in the fine margins at this point in the season. Where we are ranked, a shot here or a shot there could be a big difference on how far we can get in the postseason … being able to stay sharp mentally as well as at peace with yourself is key on those long days,” said Alonso.
