NEW HAVEN, Conn. – The #5-ranked Commodore men’s golf team is in a tie for third after two rounds at the NCAA New Haven Regional with a two-day team total of 567 (285-282). Sophomore Matthias Schwab paced the Vanderbilt effort on Friday with a second-round 67, and the sophomore leads all Commodores after two rounds with a 136 (69-67), which puts him in third place on the individual leader board.
Vanderbilt is tied with San Diego State for third, and are four strokes clear of the cutline after two days of play at The Course at Yale. The top five teams at the New Haven Regional will advance to the NCAA Championship May 29-June 3 at the Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla.
“We knew that today would be important and the guys did a nice job out there,” said Vanderbilt head coach Scott Limbaugh. “We really had five guys in it the entire round which is what you want in an NCAA regional. Matthias was really in control of his game all day long and did a nice job being the anchor today. Theo and Hunter also played solid and gave us some important rounds.”
South Florida leads the tournament with a three-under, 557 (281-276), nine strokes better than second-place North Carolina State.
Vanderbilt counted Schwab’s 67, a pair of 71s from Hunter Stewart and Theo Humphrey, and a 73 from Zack Jaworski. Schwab’s 67, featured three birdies and no bogeys, and his second-round total tied for the second-lowest of the day.
“I feel like I had a really good round going and was hitting it really well from the first drive on,” said Schwab. “I hit every green today and missed only one fairway, and my ball striking was very good. I hit a lot of shots close, and had a lot of eight to 20 foot putts for birdie that wouldn’t go in. But, all-in-all, I’m very satisfied with my round.
“Obviously, as a team, we would have liked to maybe shoot a lower score than what we ended up doing, but we’re still in it.”
As a team, the Commodores counted 10 birdies on the day, with freshman Theo Humphrey posting a team-high four. Schwab had three, Jaworski two, and Stewart one.
“It was a long day. I had to stay patient,” said Stewart. “I could have done a better job of that for sure. I made two bogeys coming in, which was a frustrating finish, but thankfully, Matthias carried the load today with the other guys doing some good things. We’re right in it, and we’re in a fine position, but it was a struggle out there today. I didn’t really hole any putts, and if I could have done that, I could have played a really nice round. Unfortunately, I didn’t, but there’s always tomorrow.”
Individually, Oklahoma State’s Jordan Niebrugge moved to the top of the leader board after a second-round 62. He leads first-round leader Rigel Fernandes of South Florida by one stroke.
Vanderbilt will play its final round at The Course at Yale on Saturday, and will tee off at 7:50 ET off of the first tee. The Commodores will play with Oklahoma State and Iowa.
“Tomorrow is a great opportunity for us to take another step towards being the best team we can be,” said Limbaugh. “I know the guys will be excited about that. We need to continue to trust ourselves and each other to do our jobs.”
T3. Vanderbilt – 285-282=567
3. Matthias Schwab – 69-67=136
T12. Hunter Stewart – 70-71=141
T21. Theo Humphrey – 72-71=143
T46. Zack Jaworski – 75-73=148
T50. Carson Jacobs – 74-75=149
