His 5-under 67 tied him with former teammate Matt Marshall for top honors, advancing the pair along with four others to sectional qualifying at Saticoy Country Club in Somis on June 8.

Current Aggie Nate Pistacchio, who qualified for the sectional tournament last year, narrowly missed getting into a playoff for a berth this year, finishing eighth after shooting a 69. Other Aggies to play well in a strong field include Phil Huffman who had a 71 and Andrew Haggen who shot 72.

Austin has enjoyed an outstanding sophomore season for UC Davis, leading the team with a 72.0 scoring average while winning three tournaments including the Big West Conference Championship last month in San Luis Obispo.

"He's playing amazing golf right now and deserves to advance," said UC Davis coach Cy Williams. "He'll have a legitimate chance to get through at Saticoy the way he's playing right now.

"It would'v been awesome to see Nate make it as well," he added. "He played a great round and was just one stroke away from qualifying for sectionals two consecutive years. That's a very high level of golf he's playing."

Marshall added to his impressive playing career after qualifying in 2007 for the U.S. Amateur.

UC Davis will open play at the NCAA West Regional at Lake Merced Country Club in Daly City on Thursday morning. The 54-hole tournament runs through Saturday.