Hawai‘i Hilo finishes 5th at regional, earns berth in NCAA II National Championship

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Hawai‘i Hilo climbed one more rung up the proverbial ladder to finish fifth on Wednesday, May 4, at the NCAA Division II Central/West Men’s Golf Regional in Albuquerque, N.M., and earn a berth in the National Championship.

The Vulcans fired a 12-over-par 876 to claim the fifith and final berth from the Central/West Region for the D-II Nationals. Hawai‘i Hilo entered the tournament as the 10^th seed after winning the PacWest Championship and earning the automatic berth into the regional.

The three-day, 54-hole regional was held May 2-4 at The Championship Golf Course at the University of New Mexico. Golfers played on the Par 72, 7324-yard course.

Grand Canyon finished 11^th with a 26-over-par 890, while Dixie State placed 12^th with an 892. Kyle Souza of Chico State defeated Mark Geddes of Grand Canyon in a one-hole playoff for the final individual berth into the NCAAs. He finished tied for seventh with a one-under-par 215.

The top five teams and the top two student-athletes not with a team from the regional will advance to the national finals May 16-20 at the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail at The Shoals in Florence, Ala. The NCAA Division II National Championship will be hosted by the University of North Alabama.

The Vulcans Blake Snyder was the top PacWest finisher, taking second place with a four-under-par 68 on the final round. He finished four under for the tournament with a 212.

Notre Dame de Namur’s Ryan Sheffer reeled off a two-under-par 70 on the final day to finish even for the tournament with a 216. He tied for 11^th overall and finished third among PacWest golfers.