Utah Tech finished in eighth place at the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate, which concluded on Wednesday at The Classic Club in Palm Desert, California.
The Trailblazers began the tournament with a 1-under 287 on Monday and improved to a 5-under 283 on Tuesday. This performance moved them from a tie for ninth to seventh place with a two-day total of 570, six strokes under par. However, the team was unable to maintain its momentum during the final round, closing with a 6-over 294 and ending the event at even par 864.
Colorado, ranked No. 46 nationally, led throughout the tournament and secured the team title with a score of 830, finishing at 34 under par. Maryland finished second at 842 (-22), while California Baptist took third place with an overall score of 845 (-19).
Junior Ashton McArthur led Utah Tech individually by tying for eleventh place at six under par (210). He started his tournament with a bogey-free round of three-under-par (69) and repeated that score in the second round, which included three birdies and an eagle. Over three rounds, McArthur recorded nine birdies and finished Wednesday’s round at even par (72).
Freshman David Liechty recovered from an opening-round score of three-over-par (75) by shooting two-under (70) in the second round and four-under (68) in the final round. This surge moved him up thirty-one places into a tie for seventeenth at three under par. Liechty led Utah Tech with twelve birdies across all rounds.
Another freshman, Joe Zhou, had eight total birdies during the tournament. He opened play with his collegiate career-low score of one-under-par (71), followed by rounds of even-par (72) and four-over-par (76), tying for fifty-second place at plus-three overall.
Redshirt junior Braden Anderson also made nine birdies over three rounds. He posted consecutive scores of even-par (72) before shooting six-over-par (78) in his final round to finish tied for sixty-eighth place at plus-six.
Utah Tech’s next competition will be at the Bandon Dunes Championships in Bandon, Oregon from March 8-10.
