The golf team continued its dominant fall season with an improbable come from behind victory over the seventh ranked UCLA Bruins in the U.S. Collegiate Championship in Alpharetta, Ga. over the weekend. Tech secured its second win in its last three tries in the tournament, aided by an unexpected eagle by sophomore Ollie Schniederjans on the eighteenth hole while Tech was trailing by one stroke.
Tech, ranked No. 11 in the country, trailed by eight strokes heading into the back-nine, but completed a furious comeback that culminated in Schniederjans’ three-foot putt. Sitting in the middle of the fairway on the final hole, 220 yards from the cup, Schniederjans knew a birdie would tie.
“I knew I needed birdie to tie and eagle to win,” said Schniederjans, according to ramblinwreck.com. “Knowing that and with all those people out there watching, that was the coolest hole I’ve ever played. I was in between clubs, and I went with the longer club because I wanted to hit a cut shot in there. I didn’t hit it exactly like I drew it up, but when I hit it, I knew it was going to end up perfect.”
Schniederjans’ shot fell to within three feet of the hole, and Tech escaped with the victory, two strokes off of the highest winning total in the history of the tournament.
Tech’s victory marks the second of the season with at least twelve top twenty-five teams in the field, as No. 4 USC, No. 24 Stanford, and No. 12 Duke all finished behind Tech. The number one ranked player in the country, Talor Gooch of Oklahoma state, was also in the field.
Individually, Schniederjans’ one-over par was enough for a tie for seventh place, while redshirt junior Seth Reeves finished tied for 13th with a three over par. Tech also had four golfers compete individually as redshirt junior Bo Andrews finished tied for ninth with a two over 218 and freshman Shun Yat Hak finished tied with Reeves for 13th with a three-over 219.
This win marks the second win in four tries this fall season. Tech will be off until February when the team will head to Waikoloa, Hawai’i to participate in the Amer Ari Invitational.
Tech will look to compete in the NCAA championship for the 15th time in the last 15 years, adding to the prestige of BYU Alum and Head Coach Bruce Heppler’s resume.