Austin, Texas ----- San Jose State University concluded its first trip in seven years to a NCAA Regional Men's Golf Championship in ninth place in a 14-team field.
The Spartans completed 54 holes on the University of Texas par 71, 7,355-yards course with an 888 team total.
Host Texas finished first at 827, 20 strokes ahead of TCU at 847. The top five teams in the field are advancing to the NCAA Championships, May 24-29, in Fayetteville, Ark. Clemson at 851, Pepperdine at 858 and Southern California at 860 claimed the remaining qualifying positions from the Austin Regional.
"We played at a hell of a golf course. It took its toll on us. We could have played better, but I don't know if we could have played any harder," said San Jose State men's golf coach John Kennaday, whose team started the regional championship in eighth place after the first 18 holes before setting into ninth after each of the last days.
"I think we did really well this year. If you take a look at the whole picture, we stayed relatively healthy throughout the entire year. This golf course was just a treat to play. It never gave you a thing, but it was really cool actually."
With a final round of even par 71, his second of the championship, junior Sean Yu was the highest San Jose State finisher tying for 20th place at 217. In his final tournament as a Spartan, Kevin Velo tied for 29th place at 219. Senior Ben Campbell tied for 55th at 228. Sophomores Matt Heitel and Bryce Wortman tied for 62nd at 232.
"Three of the six down here already have told me, they can't wait for next season and we haven't even left the lunch table yet. Everyone is very positive and they know we're going to learn, gain from this experience, and march on," concluded the San Jose State head coach.
TCU's Stefano Mazzoli and Steven Chernoy and Cole Hammer of Texas shared medalist honors at nine-under par 204. Only 15 players in the 75-player field finished 54 holes under par.
San Jose State University Men's Golf
NCAA Austin, Texas Regional Championship
University of Texas Golf Club
Par 71, 7,355 yards
| Team scores |
|
| 1. Texas |
827 |
| 2. TCU |
847 |
| 3. Clemson |
851 |
| 4. Pepperdine |
858 |
| 5. Southern California |
860 |
| 6. Arkansas |
865 |
| 7. Iowa |
870 |
| 8. Marquette |
880 |
| 9. San Jose State |
888 |
| 10. Missouri-Kansas City |
890 |
| 11. Saint Mary's (Calif.) |
891 |
| 12. Sam Houston State |
896 |
| 13. Army West Point |
910 |
| 14. Prairie View A&M |
924 |
| Top individual finishers |
|
| 1. Stefano Mazzoli, TCU |
71-69-64=204 |
| Steven Chernoy, Texas |
72-66-66=204 |
| Cole Hammer, Texas |
70-68-66=204 |
| 4. Joe Highsmith, Pepperdine |
68-70-69=207 |
| 5. Sam Kim, Southern California |
69-71-69=209 |
| San Jose State scores |
|
| 20. Sean Yu |
71-75-71=217 |
| 29. Kevin Velo |
71-73-75=219 |
| 55. Ben Campbell |
74-78-76=228 |
| 62. Matt Heitel |
81-77-74=232 |
| 62. Bryce Wortman |
75-83-74=232 |
