May 15, 2015
NEW HAVEN, Conn. - The San Diego State men's golf team remains tied for third place after carding a 3-over par 283 on Friday during the second round of the NCAA New Haven Regional. With their performance, the sixth-seeded Aztecs find themselves knotted with Vanderbilt at 7-over 567 for the tournament, just one stroke behind second-place North Carolina State (+6) and 10 shots in back of front-runner South Florida (-3) at The Course at Yale.
The three-day event continues with final-round action on Saturday as the top five schools advance out of the regional into the NCAA championship series, slated for May 29-June 3 in Bradenton, Fla. Oklahoma State (+10) presently occupies the fifth and final slot, while Iowa (+11), Ohio State (+13) and North Texas (+13) follow close behind on the par-70, 6,803-yard track.
"We started off attacking and making some putts," said SDSU head coach Ryan Donovan. "Although we struggled a bit on the back, we're still in contention to win the tournament with one round to play. We have a solid game plan and we will stick to it."
The Aztec charge was led by senior Xander Schauffele, who fired an even-par 70 to share team-best honors with sophomore and fellow San Diegan Nahum Mendoza III. Schauffele was another model of consistency on Friday, logging 14 pars, including seven straight to finish his round. Despite offsetting two bogeys with a pair of birdies, however, the Scripps Ranch High alumnus slipped three spots on the individual leaderboard, landing in a tie for eighth at 140.
Conversely, Mendoza made the biggest gain of SDSU's starters, vaulting 15 places into a tie for 31st at 5-over 145. The Francis Parker High product was cruising at 3-under through 12 holes thanks to a trio of birdies, including back-to-back conversions on the sixth and seventh greens. However, a bogey at No. 13 and an untimely double-bogey on the 18th prevented a steeper climb.
The Aztec cause was also aided by Riccardo Michelini (Carpi, Italy), who sits one shot behind Schauffele in a five-way tie for 12th at 1-over 141 after posting a second-round 71. The SDSU sophomore, who began the day tied for fifth, eased the sting of four bogeys somewhat with three birdies, including a successful drain on the par-5 16th as part of strong five-hole finish where he also made four pars.
In addition, PJ Samiere (Kailua, Hawaii) had his score figure in the Aztecs' total for the second day in a row after shooting a 72. Despite notching 12 pars overall with consecutive birdies at Nos. 5 and 6, the SDSU freshman was hampered by two bogeys and a double-bogey midway through his round, hastening a slide from the 12th spot into the 21st position at 3-over 143.
Elsewhere, Ryann Ree (Redondo Beach, Calif.) ended the day in a tie for 36th at 6-over 146 after carding his second straight 73. The junior transfer sank the second of his two birdies on the par-4, 365-yard No. 14, which ranked as the seventh-toughest hole on Friday, but five bogeys proved too much to overcome.
Oklahoma State's Jordan Niebrugge (-6) fired a 62 to grab a slim one-stroke advantage in the individual standings with first-round leader Rigel Fernandes of South Florida (-5), while Matthias Schwab of Vanderbilt (-4) sits in third, followed by Northwestern's individual regional qualifier Dylan Wu (-2).
The Aztecs are scheduled to tee off in the final round of the New Haven Regional on Saturday alongside South Florida and North Carolina State on the first hole, beginning at 8:45 a.m. ET/5:45 a.m. PT. Live hole-by-hole results courtesy of Golfstat will be available on GoAztecs.com.
2015 NCAA New Haven RegionalRound Two ResultsThe Course at YaleNew Haven, Conn.Par 70, 6,803 yards
Team Scores (Top 5 advance to NCAA Championships)1. South Florida 281-276--557 (-3)2. North Carolina State 289-277--566 (+6)T3. San Diego State 284-283--567 (+7)T3. Vanderbilt 285-282--567 (+7)5. Oklahoma State 286-284--570 (+10)6. Iowa 291-280--571 (+11)T7. Ohio State 282-291--573 (+13)T7. North Texas 291-282--573 (+13)9. Troy 289-289--578 (+18)10. LSU 294-287--581 (+21)11. College of Charleston 303-285--588 (+28)12. Arkansas 301-289--590 (+30)13. Robert Morris 305-292--597 (+37)14. St. Peter's 307-294--601 (+41)
Individual Leaders (Top 5 of 75 players + SDSU)1. Jordan Niebrugge, Oklahoma State 72-62--134 (-6)2. Rigel Fernandes, South Florida 64-71--135 (-5)3. Mattias Schwab, Vanderbilt 69-67--136 (-4)4. Dylan Wu, Northwestern* 68-70--138 (-2)T5. Carter Page, North Carolina State 71-68--139 (-1)T5. Tolver Dozier, Troy 70-69--139 (-1)T5. Brandon Matthews, Temple* 70-69--139 (-1)---T8. Xander Schauffele, SDSU 70-70--140 (E)T12. Riccardo Michelini, SDSU 70-71--141 (+1)T21. PJ Samiere, SDSU 71-72--143 (+2)T31. Nahum Mendoza, SDSU 75-70--145 (+5)T36. Ryann Ree, SDSU 73-73--146 (+6)
* - competing as an individual