WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – The Vanderbilt men’s golf team punched its ticket into the 2024 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship on Wednesday, as the No. 1-seeded Commodores won the 2024 West Lafayette Regional with a three-round score of 24-under 840.
Vanderbilt posted round scores of 277-283-280 to finish the West Lafayette Regional at 24-under 840. It is the third time in program history that Vanderbilt has won an NCAA Regional. The last time came in 2022 at Palm Beach, which capped off back-to-back NCAA Regional victories for Vandy.
“I’m proud of those guys,” said Vanderbilt men’s golf head coach Scott Limbaugh. “We wanted to be a team in pursuit and not protective. Doing hard things together makes you better. That’s what our team did all week and today especially. It’s a tough golf course with a lot of challenging shots, but I wanted us to come out today and appreciate who we are, fight, and send a statement. I think our team was able to do that.”
Graduate student William Moll became the first Commodore to win an individual title at an NCAA Regional, as he finished in first place at the 2024 West Lafayette Regional after carding 7-under 209. The All-American held round scores of 70-69-70 over three days of play at the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex. The Houston, Texas, native led Vanderbilt in par-3 scoring at 1-under.
“I was really consistent and it kind of compares to how I’ve played for most of the spring,” said Moll. “Being able to keep the ball in front of me and rolling a couple of putts was awesome. The team played amazing. We didn’t have a great second round, but we bounced back and really did well today. It’s great to end Regionals this way.”
It’s Moll’s first win of the 2023-24 season, while it is his second career collegiate victory. The graduate student becomes the fourth Commodore to win an individual title this season, as he joins Gordon Sargent (Mason Rudolph), Cole Sherwood (Ben Hogan Collegiate), and Jackson Van Paris (St Andrews Links Collegiate). Moll becomes the 12th Dore golfer in program history with two or more individual wins.
“We’ve got great depth and that’s something when we tee off we know we’re going to have,” said Limbaugh. “It was great to see William be steady, he rolled the ball all week. His love and excitement for the game really helped him have a great tournament. That’s great for our team.”
Junior Gordon Sargent finished in a tie for second place at 6-under 210. The Birmingham, Alabama, native closed out the West Lafayette Regional at 1-under 71 in Round 3. The All-American opened the tournament by tying the Kampen-Cosler Course record at an NCAA event by carding 5-under 67. It would be a short-lived record, as Wisconsin’s Cameron Huss finished Round 1 at 6-under 66 to claim the course record.
Senior Cole Sherwood and graduate student Matthew Riedel each finished inside the top 10 on the player leaderboard. Sherwood shot even par in Wednesday’s Round 3, as he concluded the tournament at 4-under 212 to end in a tie for eighth. Riedel carded a team-low 3-under 69 during the third round to put him in a tie for 10th, finishing at 3-under 213. Junior Jackson Van Paris also finished under par at the West Lafayette Regional, as the junior went 2-under 214 over three days of play to conclude the tournament in a tie for 14th.
The win at the NCAA West Lafayette Regional gives Vanderbilt its seventh team victory of the 2023-24 season, which is tied with the 2022-23 squad for the second-most team wins in a season in program history. Vandy’s total score of 24-under 840 is the fourth-lowest 54-hole total at an NCAA Regional in program history.
Vanderbilt advances to the 2024 NCAA Men’s Golf Championship, which will be held at Omni La Costa Spa and Resort on May 24-29. Check back with VUCommodores.com for a full tournament preview.
For more information on the Vanderbilt men’s golf team, follow @VandyMGolf on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter/X.
