WALLA WALLA, Wash.—Lewis & Clark College men's golf overcame a slow start to post their second-lowest round of the season on Day One of the Northwest Conference Spring Classic. 
 
THE BASICS
 
Men's Golf – T-5^th out of 9 Teams - +5 (293) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
 
Four Pioneers finished with scores of 74 or better on Sunday to help the Pioneers post a round of 293 (+5) for the second-time this season. 
 
Men's golf sat +8 at the turn and were sitting in ninth place out of nine teams. A strong back nine from the majority of the squad helped them get back to +5 and move within striking distance of third place after 18 holes. 
 
First year Charlie Hageman and senior Jon Westlake finished tied for the team lead and tied for 13^th overall. The pair both carded 73s (+1) but in drastically different fashions. 
 
Hageman bogeyed four of the opening five holes before posting four-straight pars to finish the front-nine at +4. After his fifth bogey of the round on the 11^th hole moved him to +5, he birdied four of the next six holes to make a run up the leaderboard. Westlake, who was playing in his eighth NWC Tournament and third-straight NWC Spring Classic, finished his round with three bogeys and two birdies. He was even through 15, before a bogey on 16 denied him back-to-back rounds of par of better. 
 
First year Mason Hill and sophomore Luke Blankinship finished one stroke behind Hageman and Westlake. The duo of Hill and Blankinship are tied for 21^st after Day One with a score of +2 (74).
 
Hill was the only Lewis & Clark player to get off to a strong start on Sunday. He birdied the first hole and then posted a par on the next 11 holes to stay at -1 through 12. Hill recorded a bogey on 13 to move back to par and two more over the last five holes to finish +2. Blankinship followed a similar path to Hageman. The sophomore recorded four bogeys on the front nine before settling in. He posted his first birdie of the day on 10 and added two more on 16 and 18 to finish +2. 
 
First year Joonho Moon finished fifth on the team and tied for 34^th overall. He posted a 77 (+5) in his first collegiate conference event. Moon had a similar trajectory to Hageman and Blankinship. He birdied the second hole but then went +5 over the next three holes to sit at +4 after five. Moon would tack on four more bogeys to sit +8 through 12 holes. He made a late comeback with birdies on the 14^th, 15^th and 18^th holes to salvage a round of 77. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• The Pioneers sit in the middle of the NWC standings after Day One. The University of Puget Sound and George Fox University are tied for third after shooting rounds of 292 (+4). The Pioneers and Pacific Lutheran University are tied for fifth after posting 293s (+5). Whitworth University (+10), Linfield University (+11) and Pacific University (+12) are all at least five strokes back. 
• Willamette University, who won the NWC Fall Classic, sits first overall after posting a score of -9 (279). Host Whitman University is second, but they are eight strokes back with a score of -1 (287).
• Moon finished tied for first on Day One with an average of 2.80 on Par 3s (-1). 
• Hill sits tied for second in the field with 14 pars in his first 18 holes. 
• Lewis & Clark also shot a 293 (+5) at the NWC Fall Classic in round number one. 
• Hageman and Moon are tied for eighth in the field with their four birdies apiece.  

WHAT'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark will close out the NWC Spring Classic on Monday. The Pioneers will begin teeing off at 10:20 a.m.