All three Colorado-based teams competing in the Men’s NCAA Division I Regionals shot under-par scores Tuesday and vaulted up the leaderboard in separate tournaments.
With the top five team finishers after 54 holes advancing to the Finals, Colorado State University finds itself in a three-way tie for fifth place in the Reunion, Fla. Regional. The University of Colorado is in a two-way tie for sixth place, three strokes out of the fifth position, in Stockton, Calif. And the University of Northern Colorado jumped from 12th to eighth place in Bryan, Texas, sitting 14 strokes behind the fifth-place team.
CSU is aiming for its first trip to the Men’s NCAA Finals since 2011 and CU is seeking its first berth in nationals since 2002.
Colorado State posted a stellar 11-under-par 277 total — Tuesday’s second-best score in Florida — and shares fifth place with Vanderbilt and North Carolina at 11-under 565 going into Wednesday’s final round. Jake Staiano, the 2017 CGA Player of the Year, is setting the pace individually for the Rams, sharing sixth place at 5-under-par 139. The junior sits three strokes out of the individual lead.
Meanwhile, in Stockton, the CU Buffs managed a 6-under-par 282 on Tuesday and stands at 4-under 572 overall, along with fellow Pac-12 team Oregon three strokes behind fifth-place TCU. Two seniors continue to lead CU, with Yannik Paul sharing 10th place individually at 4-under-par 140, while Coloradan Spencer Painton is 14th at 141.
UNC, making its first NCAA Regional appearance since 2014, made a big move Tuesday with a 1-under-par 287 team score in Texas. That leaves the Bears at 17-over-par 593. Big Sky Conference Player of the Year Joshua Matz continues to lead UNC individually as he is in 25th place at 2-over-par 146. The team in fifth place in the Regional, Ole Miss, includes a Colorado golfer, Josh Seiple, who shares 32nd place individually in the tournament, at 147.
Play will conclude Wednesday at each NCAA Regional.
In addition to the top five team finishers, the top individual not on one of those teams from each Regional will advance to the NCAA Finals, set for May 25-30 in Stillwater, Okla.
Men’s NCAA Division I Regionals
May 14-16, 2018 in Stockton, Calif.
6. (out of 13 teams) Colorado 290-282–572
10. Yannik Paul 71-69–140
14. Spencer Painton 71-70–141
18. Daniel O’Loughlin 73-69–142
61. John Souza 75-74–149
73. Ross Macdonald 75-80–155
May 14-16, 2018 in Reunion, Fla.
5. (out of 14 teams) Colorado State 288-277–565
6. Jake Staiano 71-68–139
23. Max Oelfke 73-70–143
34. Jack Ainscough 76-68–144
34. Parathakorn Suyasri 73-71–144
46. AJ Ott 71-75–146
May 14-16, 2018 in Bryan, Texas
8. (out of 13 teams) Northern Colorado 306-287–593
25. Joshua Matz 71-75–146
32. Li Chen 78-69–147
40. Andrew Romano 79-70–149
55. Coby Welch 78-73–151
75. Marcus Tait 84-83–167
Also
32. Coloradan Josh Seiple, Mississippi 74-73–147
May 14-16, 2018 in Norman, Okla.
Chris Korte, Denver (competing only as individual) 76-70–146
