Four of Georgia’s college golf teams qualified for the NCAA Division I Championship, with Georgia Tech and Georgia both capturing Regional titles.
Kennesaw State and Georgia State also earned spots in the NCAA Championship, finishing 2nd in their Regionals. The four Georgia squads will be among the 30 teams going for an NCAA Championship at Prairie Dunes in Hutchinson, Kan., May 23-28.
Both Georgia Southern and Mercer competed in NCAA Regional competition but came up short of top-five finishes needed to qualify.
Georgia Tech, one of the six teams seeded first in the Regionals, won in Raleigh, N.C., by 17 strokes with a 27-under 825 total.
The Yellow Jackets shot 16-under 268 with four scores in the 60s to lead by 10 after the first round. They moved 16 ahead after a second round 272, again with four scores of 69 or better. Tech expanded its lead by shooting 1-over 285 the final day in windy conditions
Ollie Schniederjans, a junior from Powder Springs, came close to his sixth individual title of the season, placing 2nd at 7-under 206, three shots behind the medalist. Schniederjans, the ACC Player of the Year and a candidate for national Player of the Year honors, led after the first two rounds with scores of 66 and 68, but was overtaken the final day after shooting 1-over 72.
Seth Reeves, a senior from Duluth, shot 2-under 69 all three rounds and tied for 3rd at 207. He was only Tech player to break par the final day. Bo Andrews was one shot behind Schniederjans after scores of 67-68 the first two days, but slipped to a final round 74 and tied for 6th at 209.
Also recording a top-10 finish was Anders Albertson, a junior from Woodstock. Albertson shot 73-67-71 to take 8th at 211. Richy Werenski matched Schniederjans’ opening 66 and finished T15 at 214.
It was the fifth NCAA Regional Championship for Georgia Tech, the first since 2002. Tech has won six tournaments this season, one shy of the school record, set by the 2001-02 team that finished 2nd in the NCAA Championship. The 27-under score was the second lowest in team history relative to par, missing the mark by just two strokes.
Mercer also competed in the Raleigh Regional and finished 8th at 870, 10 shots out of a top-5 finish needed to advance to the NCAA Championship. The Bears shot 291-286-293 to finish with an 870 total.
Eatonton’s Trey Rule led Mercer, tying for 9th at 212 with scores of 71-71-70. James Beale was T25 at 216, with Hanes Reimers T27 at 217. It was the first ever appearance for the Bears in the NCAA Regionals.
Georgia, also one of the six No. 1 seeds in the Regionals, won by 13 shots in San Antonio, finishing with an 11-under 853 total.
The Bulldogs shot 7-under 281 the first day to lead by four, with the margin shrinking to two after 36 holes following a big charge by Vanderbilt, which included a 69 by Duluth’s Jordan Janico. Georgia shot 3-under 285 the second day, and closed with a 1-under 287 to pull away, as Vanderbilt shot 26 strokes higher the final round than the day before.
Georgia was led by Lee McCoy, a sophomore from Clarkesville, who enjoyed his best tournament as a Bulldog, shooting 71-68-67 to finish 2nd at 9-under 207, just one stroke behind the medalist.
Greyson Sigg, a freshman from Augusta, led the Bulldogs with an opening 68 and ended up tied for 9th at 215 after scores of 74-73 the final two days. Joey Garber finished T16 at 72-71-74—217, with Michael Cromie also tying for 16th after scores of 70-75-72. Keith Mitchell contributed a second round 72.
It was the fourth tournament victory this season for the Bulldogs, who have qualified for the NCAA Championship 16 of the 18 seasons Chris Haack has been the team’s head coach.
Georgia State moved past Vanderbilt the final day to place 2nd at 866, 13 shots behind the Bulldogs. The Panthers moved up from 8th after the first round to 4th after 36 holes, and shot 289 the final day to finish three shots ahead of 5th place UCLA.
Three Georgia State golfers finished 12th or better, led by Tyler Gruca, a senior from Alpharetta. Gruca shot 73-66-71 to finish 3rd in the individual competition at 210. Davin White, a junior from Locust Grove, tied for 9th at 215, closing with a team best 69.
Junior Damon Stephenson shot even par 72 all three days and tied for 12th at 216. Nathan Mallonee, a freshman from Lexington, shot 74 the first day and had two of his three scores count. Jonathan Grey contributed a second round 74.
This will be the fifth NCAA appearance for the Panthers, who closed out their season with three straight wins, including the Sum Belt Conference championship.
Georgia Southern finished 8th in the San Antonio Regional with an 880 total, 11 shots out of 5th place. The Eagles were tied for 5th after 36 holes, but fell back with a final round of 302.
Hayden Anderson and McDonough’s Will Evans were the team’s top finishers, tying for 21st at 219. Charlie Martin of LaGrange was T25 at 220, with all three at par or better after 36 holes before struggling the final day. St. Simons’ Scott Wolfes was low for the Eagles in the third round with a 73.
Kennesaw State will make its first ever NCAA Championship appearance after placing 2nd behind defending national champion Alabama at the Auburn Regional.
Alabama shot 11-under 853 to win by 22 strokes over the Owls, who finished with an 875 total, three ahead of host Auburn, which placed 3rd.
Jimmy Beck, a junior from Columbus, was low for Kennesaw, closing with a 71 to tie for 17th at 219. Kelby Burton, a junior from Evans, was tied for the individual lead at 140 after a second round 67, but dropped back the last day and tied for 19th at 220.
Also tying for 19th was Teremoana Beaucousin, whose final round 70 was low for the Owls. Austin Vick, a junior from Evans, tied for 34th at 224, with Chris Guglielmo, a freshman from Cumming, shot 72 the final day as the Owls posted a 1-under 287 team total to move past Auburn into 2nd place.