Washington and Lee Finishes in a Tie for Third, Hurst Ties for Fourth Overall
ROCHESTER, N.Y. --- Virginia Wesleyan College sophomore Evan Cox highlighted a banner week for ODAC golfers at the NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championships in Rochester, N.Y. Cox tied with two other players at 8-over par to force a three-golfer playoff. The ODAC Golfer of the Year birdied the eighth hole at Midvale Country Club to win the playoff and become the Marlins first men's golf national champion.
Washington and Lee University's team added to the success for conference golfers as the Generals tied for third (see picture below), marking their best finish ever in the season-ending event. W&L's 60-over par 1,208 was 10 shots behind champion Claremont-Mudd-Scripps and four strokes short of Huntingdon College.
Individual Leaderboard Team Leaderboard
Cox (72-72-75-76--295) was in ninth place and four shots off the lead following the opening round. Starting on the back nine, he posted bogeys on Nos. 16 and 17. Cox would card two birdies on his second nine but finished with bogey to close the day at 1-over 72. He moved up to second place and was one shot off the lead after shooting even par on day two, which saw him post five birdies and five bogeys.
He took a share of the lead after the third round. Cox double-bogeyed two holes but collected three birdies on the day. He took the outright lead early in the final round, but Huntingdon's Addison Lambeth would catch him on the back nine. Cox regained the outright lead heading into the final hole, but a bogey on No. 18 put him back in a tie Lambeth. Meanwhile, Alex Wrenn from Claremont-Mudd-Scripps birdied three-straight holes to force a three-way playoff.
Cox faced off with Lambeth and the red-hot Wrenn on the eighth hole to determine a national champion. After striping a drive down the middle, he drilled a six-iron to within three feet to setup his title-winning birdie. The win was Cox's fourth of the season and second straight, pairing this triumph with his ODAC individual crown. Cox also earned PING First Team All-American accolades for his performance.
Washington and Lee junior Conley Hurst completed the championship just two strokes behind the leaders in a two-way tie for fourth-place. He posted a four-day score of 72-72-78-75—297 (+10). It is W&L's highest individual finish at the NCAA Championship since Nathaniel James '08 tied for third in the 2008 championship.
Sophomore Luke Farley carded a score of 74-73-75-80—302 (+15) to place in a tie for 16th out of the 81 golfers that made the cut. Sophomore Andrew Barth tied for 21st overall with a 80-72-75-76—303 (+16) and junior Todd Alan McDonald tied for 34th with a score of 79-72-76-80—307 (+20).
First-year George May rounded out the Generals competing in the field. He placed 71st with a +34 score of 80-82-80-79—321.
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