Torrey Pines High School sophomore Evan Liu shot a 3-under-par 68 on Monday at Steele Canyon Golf Course to take a one-stroke lead in the CIF San Diego Section Golf Championships.
Alone in second place at 2 under was another sophomore, Cathedral Catholic’s Oliver Mayson, who fired a 69.
Four players are tied at even par, including defending champion Reed Arnaldo, a senior from La Costa Canyon. The other players shooting par 71 were Cathedral’s Michael Riebe, who tied for second in the 2023 CIF championships, Cathedral’s Yunze Wang and San Marcos’ Luke Schnider.
The second and final round of the tournament will be held Wednesday at Torrey Pines North. The top two teams, plus the top 12 individuals not on those teams, qualify for the CIF SoCal Regional Championship on May 29 at Los Serranos Golf Course in Chino Hills.
Barring an incredible collapse, Cathedral Catholic is all but assured of advancing to the SoCal Regional. The Dons’ five scoring players finished at 5-over par, 20 strokes ahead of La Costa Canyon. Torrey Pines is third at 30 over.
How deep is Cathedral’s team? Mayson, who is one stroke off the lead, is the Dons’ No. 6 golfer.
Of his team’s depth, Cathedral coach Joe Filippone said: “That’s how good these guys are.”
Filippone said Mayson described his round as “just a real smart minus-2.”
The team championships are divided into three divisions. At 30 over, Torrey Pines leads Division 1 by 12 strokes over San Marcos. The Falcons have won nine straight section titles.
In Division 2, Cathedral Catholic is 20 strokes clear of La Costa Canyon. In Division 3, Bishop’s (44 over) leads Santa Fe Christian by seven strokes.
Filippone made it clear that Cathedral doesn’t just want to win Division 2. The Dons want to be the lowest scoring team in all divisions.
“We want to be the number one team in San Diego,” he said.
