NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – The UT Arlington men's golf team registered its 2nd-lowest round of the year with a 7-under 281 in the final round of Appalachian State's Bash at the Beach Tuesday from The Surf Golf and Beach Club.
 
Led by a pair of final-round 3-under 69s from Caleb Hicks and Paul Gonzalez, the Mavericks moved up the leaderboard two positions from their overnight slot to finish in solo 4th with a 7-under 857 three-round total (292-284-281) – their fourth top-5 of the season, but first since Oct. 15.
 
Hicks tied for 5th in the field of 104 at -6 (74-67-69: 210), representing the sophomore's best career finish, second top 10 of his career and first time signing for back-to-back rounds in the 60s. Gonzalez tied for 10th at -4 (73-70-69: 212), marking his fourth top-10 showing of the year on the strength of his team-leading fifth round in the 60s this season.
 
UNCW and Jacksonville State finished the 54 holes tied at -22 (842), but UNCW won the trophy on a sudden-death playoff 18th hole. Host Appalachian State (-16, 848) was the only other school in the 15-team field to finish ahead of UTA.
 
For UTA, Kyle Cox was the third-different Maverick to post an under-par 54-hole total as the sophomore secured his fourth top-20 position of the year at -1 (71-73-71: 215). The final-round 1-under performance represented his team-leading 12th par-or-better round of the season, and combined with Gonzalez and Hicks it's the first time in now seven tournaments this year that UTA has had three 54-holes scores under par.
 
That accomplishment is made even more impressive when considering the average score for the week was more than three shots over par at 75.37 – equating to an average three-round score to par of +10.
 
All four counting scores for the day for the Mavs as part of their 7-under final round were at, or below, par. That was finalized thanks to a season-low 72 from Zach Cole – just the junior's second-career round of 72 or lower (71 as a freshman). He finished at +6 for the week (74-76-72: 222).
 
Making his first appearance of the season and first since last April as an individual, Jacob Massengale rounded out the UTA scoring for the day and week with a final-round 80 as part of a 231 total (77-74-80).
 
In addition to that quintet comprising the Mavs' lineup, UTA also had four members teeing it up as individuals this week.
 
That quartet was led by freshman Daniel Cronje at +4 (76-69-75: 220), but classmate Alberto Menacho was right on his heels at +5 for the week (79-73-69: 221). The 3-under scorecard in the final round stands out even more when factoring in that it was just his third collegiate round.
 
Zakary Jones (+13; 81-70-78: 229) and Sully Billingsley (+25; 85-75-81: 241) rounded out the UTA individual scoring.
 
For Menacho, the freshman was extremely impressive in his first collegiate tournament, leading the Mavs and ranking tied for 3rd in the field with 15 birdies over the three rounds. Cox was right behind with 14, followed by Hicks and Gonzalez with 13 each; Hicks paced UTA with a pair of eagles – both of which came in Monday's opening two rounds.
 
Hicks led the Mavs in par-5 scoring for the week at -9 – tied for the 3rd-lowest in the field – while Gonzalez was tied for the 5th-best par-5 scoring at -8.
 
As a team, UTA secured the 2nd-best par-5 scoring average in the field at an incredible -31 for the three rounds. The Mavs tied for the 2nd-most birdies in the field with 57, and posted the 3rd-most eagles with four.
 
The final-round 281 Tuesday was only bettered this year by a 280 in the final round of the Mark Simpson Colorado Invitational on Oct. 8. Additionally, the 857 total is tied for the 15th-best 54-hole score in program history.
 
For Gonzalez, the junior lowers his season scoring average to an even 72.00. That remains on track to establish the single-season program record, which is currently 72.42 set by Bobby Massa in 2008-09.
 
Gonzalez and UTA will look to continue their momentum when the Mavs next tee it up at Seattle University's Redhawk Invitational Mar. 30-31 from Chambers Bay. That was the site last spring of UTA's 4th-lowest 54-hole total in program history with an 841 (-11 to par), which included several near-record individual performances.
 
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THE NEW HOME OF UTA GOLF: Texas Rangers Golf Club
The recently-opened state-of-the-art Texas Rangers Golf Club is the new home of the UT Arlington's men's and women's golf programs. The world's only Major League Baseball-branded golf course, TRGC is the result of a $24 million renovation and updated routing of the former Chester W. Ditto Golf Course at Brown Boulevard and Collins Street, just a few miles north of UTA's campus. The Home of UTA Golf was designed by UTA alumni John Colligan and Trey Kemp of Arlington-based Colligan Golf Design. It features an expansive 23-acre practice area, and a new 33,871-square-foot clubhouse – set to open in early 2020 – will feature a full-service restaurant and bar, covered patio overlooking the golf course, pro shop, locker rooms and numerous rental and event spaces. For more information about TRGC, click here.