By Mason Nesbitt, TMU Sports Information Director

As Master’s concluded the Battle at Primm in Nipton, California, on Tuesday, the tournament’s bright spot remained Karsten Briley‘s ridiculously low second round a day earlier.

Briley’s 5-under 65 on Monday highlighted a tournament the Mustangs will learn from, not revel in.

“We’re disappointed, but we’re looking forward to competing again in a few days,” said Briley, who finished at a team-low 3-over for the tournament, but fell back from sixth place overall to 21st by the end of the third round.

The Mustangs finished 12th out of 20 teams at Primm Valley Golf Club, struggling to fully take advantage of a course they felt wasn’t overly challenging.

“Simply put, we have to get better,” said TMU coach Jacob Hicks. “We need to get out of the gate quicker. Our slow starts are killing us. The guys were a bit sloppy today, and on an easy course you’ll get lapped.”

Hicks wasn’t discouraged, however.

“Lots to improve on, but we will come back with a vengeance,” he said.

The Mustangs will get that chance Saturday and Sunday when they compete at the Desert Intercollegiate in Indio, California.

Briley will look to build off a second round when he positioned himself for plenty of looks at birdies, converting seven times and posting a career-low round — one shot off the program’s all-time low round.

“I kept the ball in play, gave myself a lot of looks at birdies,” he said. “I hit every green in regulation and made some putts. I gave myself a lot of opportunities to score well.”

Briley was pleased with the Mustangs’ attitudes Tuesday.

“We didn’t beat ourselves up when bad things happened or things didn’t go our way,” he said. “We did a good job of not giving up.”

Hicks’ message after the tournament was focused on what he believes the Mustangs are capable of moving forward.

“He shared in our disappointment because we know we’re better than we scored on a course that was not playing that difficult. We didn’t play our best,” said Briley. “But he reminded us that we had another chance to compete in a few days.”

Robert Penalber was TMU’s next best finisher. The senior shot a 9-over for the tournament.