GLADEWATER, Texas - The Howard Payne University men's and women's golf teams began their 2026-2027 campaign at the Energy Weldfab Tempest Intercollegiate, hosted by LeTourneau University on October 5-6.

On the men's side, freshman Blake Owen put together a well-balanced tournament, placing 13th out of 76 competitors with a three-round score of +11 (76-77-74) in his first collegiate tournament. Miken Hernandez (+7) and Froylan Agundiz (+8) earned spots within the top 50, helping Howard Payne finish 9th out of 11 teams with a three-round score of 320-319-317. LeTourneau, the hosts, won the event with a team score of +23.

Other competitors include Trent Brown, who finished in 60th place with a +37, while Carter Guynes and Adin McDonald tied for 62nd, each scoring a +37.

The Lady Jackets competed individually for the tournament with Nicole Sanchez leading the way in 32nd place, posting a two-round score of 107-89. Maylee Scott (97-109) and Emilee Garcia (103-111) finished right behind her in 33rd and 34th place. As a team, Mary Hardin-Baylor won the event with a combined score of +38.

"Tempest was a tough test for us, but there were definitely some positives we can take away from the week," head coach Morgan Lucas added. "This is a young group that is still learning how to compete together, and tournaments like Tempest give us a good opportunity to see where we are and what we need to improve upon. I'm proud of how we continued to fight and support each other, and we're going to take what we learned here and keep moving forward."

UP NEXT: Both teams return to action on Sunday, October 18 in Victoria, Texas. The Yellow Jackets will take part in another invitational, this time hosted by Texas A&M-Victoria, that will run until Tuesday, October 20 at The Club at Colony Creek.