OC Eagles win D-II stroke play title by 15 shots, advance to match play
Warren, Ohio – A year after making the quarterfinals as the No. 4 seed before advancing to the national championship, the Eagles secured the No. 1 seed in this year’s NCAA DII Men’s Golf Championship quarterfinals, where they will take on the No. 8 seed, Simon Fraser.
Oklahoma Christian earned the top seed by dominating stroke play, taking the stroke play portion by a 15-shot advantage. OC was the only team in the 20-team field to shoot under par, shooting a three-round total score of 854 (-10).
Exequiel Rodriguez led the way for the Eagles, taking fourth place individually, shooting 69-69-73 for a total of 6-under 210d. Oklahoma Christian led the three rounds of stroke play in birdies with 61, and Rodriguez contributed 13 of them.
Alejandro Armijo finished T11, turning cards of 73-68-74, en route to a 215 (-1) total. The top-15 all earn All-American honorable mention honors, earning Armijo a spot on the list for the first time in his career.
Mateo Pulcini was the next on the leaderboard for Oklahoma Christian, recording a 74 in his final round to finish T14, making him an All-American for the third time in his career. Pulcini led OC in birdies over the three rounds with 14.
Oskari Nikku had a three-round total of 218 (+2) to finish stroke play T25. Nikku knocked down 12 birdies, with two in his final round.
Santiago Villareal continued his strong play after rallying from the round one score, to turn in a 71 today, while climbing all the way to T46 on the final day of stroke play.
Hear from Head Coach David Lynn
Oklahoma Christian will match up with Simon Fraser in a match-play setting, which means OC paired up tonight in head-to-head matchups for a best of five, where each player can earn a point for the Eagles by winning their matchup.
8:20 A.M. – Alejandro Armijo vs. Aidan Goodfellow
8:30 A.M. – Mateo Pulcini vs. Bailey Bjornson
8:40 A.M. – Exequiel Rodriguez vs. Jordan Bean
8:50 A.M. – Santiago Villareal vs. Michael Crisologo
9:00 A.M. – Oskari Nikku vs. Ryan Hodgins
The winner will advance to play the winner of West Florida against Grand Valley St. in the semifinals tomorrow afternoon.
OC-win
