May 21, 2011

Complete Results

TUCSON, Ariz. - Sparked by five birdies en route to a 3-under 68 on Saturday, UC Davis freshman Matt Hansen rallied from a shot down at the start of the day to a two-stroke victory at the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Southwest Regional and a berth in the national finals.

The Aggies finished eighth at the regional - only the top five teams advanced to the NCAA Championship - but Hansen was the highest-placing individual not on an advancing team, guaranteeing him a spot in the 54-hole finals which start May 31 in Stillwater, Okla.

Hansen's 9-under 204 was best on the team this season and delivered him a two-shot win over Alex Moore of Oregon State who owned the 36-hole lead.

UC Davis fired a 5-under 279 team score in the final round, an eight-shot improvement over its other two days, putting the Aggies 1 over for the week. Eighth-ranked San Diego State finished 19 under to win by seven shots over Texas A&M. Cal was third at 9 under while Pepperdine and Arizona tied for fourth at 8 under, all of them qualifying for Stillwater.

"I was very proud of our guys today," said Aggie coach Cy Williams. "We came out hot early and had a very good round."

Senior Austin Graham capped his standout Aggie career with a 68 as well while Andrew Haggen had a 71, Tyler Raber posted a 72 and Daniel Covrig finished with a 73. Graham tied for 32nd, Haggen tied for 34th and Raber tied for 45th in the final individual standings. Covrig was 69th.

Hansen earned his first collegiate win with a spectacular tournament that opened Thursday with a season-best 7-under 64 and the first-day lead. He had a 72 on Friday, falling into second a shot behind Moore before rallying for medalist honors. Moore carded a 71 on Saturday, finishing second at 7 under.

"He played really well," said Williams. "He kept his one 'bad' round close to par and then shot a good round today."

Starting his day on the 10th hole, Hansen was fueled by three birdies on his front nine, two of them on par-3 holes. A birdie on the par-4 first hole pushed him four shots in the red before a pair of bogeys made him 2 under with three holes to play. His birdie on the par-5 eighth marked the second straight day he birdied the 592-yard hole and helped him finish strong with a 68.

Hansen had 16 birdies in the tournament and just five bogeys. He'll be UC Davis' first representative at the NCAA Finals during its four-year Division I era. The Aggies had Division II West Regional medalists with Gregg Wilkinson in 2000 and Jay Westerlund in 2003.

"It was great to have this as my first win," said Hansen. "I'm in a good place (mentally) to head to nationals. It's great to be playing well."

Graham, a four-time All-Big West honoree, finished his Aggie career strong. Like Hansen, he had three birdies on his front nine and made the turn 3 under. He was 1 under after 16 holes but eagled the long par-5 eighth hole to go back to 3 under which is where he finished. Graham was 2 over for the tournament

Haggen had a 1-under 70 on Friday and was nearly as good on Saturday. He was 3 over after nine holes but three birdies on his back nine, including one on the par-4 ninth - his last hole - made him even for the day and just 3 over overall.

Two early birdies helped Raber get a shot below par after six holes while a birdie on the par-3 7th near the end of his round helped counter three bogeys and bring him in with a 72. He finished the tournament 5 over.

Covrig's 73 marked his best regional round by four shots and was highlighted by a birdie on the opening par-5 10th and two more birdies later in the round. He played the front and back nines each just 1 over.

The regional appearance was the second for the Aggie team during its first four years in Division I and was the third time it's been represented in the postseason. Graham advanced as an individual last year.

UC Davis earned its berth after winning the Big West Championship earlier this month. The NCAA Championship finals are being hosted by Oklahoma State.

NCAA MEN'S SOUTHWEST REGIONAL
Tucson, Ariz. (hosted by Univ. of Arizona)
OMNI Tucson National Golf Resort
Par 71, 7,199 yards
Final

TEAMS
1. San Diego State, 278-278-277-833
2. Texas A&M, 281-282-277-840
3. Cal, 286-279-278-843
T4. Arizona, 281-280-283-844
T4. Pepperdine, 284-280-280-844
6. Washington, 279-286-280-845
7. Oregon State, 284-285-280-849
8. UC DAVIS, 287-287-279-853
9. Texas Tech, 283-284-291-858
10. Liberty, 280-292-288-860
11. Purdue, 290-301-282-873
12. Tex.-Arlington, 294-288-294-876
13. Army, 302-290-290-882
14. Loyola (Md.), 310-298-295-903

INDIVIDUAL
1. Matt Hansen, UC Davis, 64-72-68-204

UC DAVIS
T32. Austin Graham, 73-74-68-215
T34. Andrew Haggen, 75-70-71-216
T45. Tyler Raber, 75-71-72-218
69. Daniel Covrig, 77-77-73-227