STILLWATER, Okla. -- The Augusta State senior duo of Mitch Krywulycz and Carter Newman registered key victories Friday afternoon as the seventh-seeded Jaguars edged No. 2 seed Georgia Tech 3-2 in the Match Play Quarterfinals of the NCAA Championships at Karsten Creek Golf Club.
With the win, ASU will advance to take on top-ranked and tourney host Oklahoma State in the semifinals Saturday morning at 11:45 a.m. (EST). The Cowboys are the No. 3 seed.
In a rematch of last year's quarterfinal match, ASU defeated the Yellow Jackets by the identical score as they did in 2010 at The Honors Course. Newman won the final two holes of his match for a 2-up victory over Tech's Paul Haley. Krywulycz won the 17th with a par and then matched birdies with the Yellow Jackets' Kyle Scott on No. 18 to win 1-up.
Jaguar junior Patrick Reed, who tied for third Thursday in the stroke play portion of the tourney, got the Jags on the board with their first point of the afternoon with a 3-2 win over James White. Reed never trailed and built his advantage to as much as 5-up after 11 holes. He closed out the match with a par on the par-4 16th.
"Having won last year, we came back with high expectations," said ASU head coach Josh Gregory. "Getting into match play was tough for as high as our hopes were and having everybody feeling good about our chances. Coming out today and playing Tech again, we knew it would be tough. Deep down, from one to five, they might have been the deepest team out here. They don't have a weak link – they've proven that all year. We found a way to get it done and our guys played great, especially for Mitch and Carter to win 17, which was huge, and we had another guy win 18. It's awesome to move on, and one day closer to trying to defend."
Senior Olle Bengtsson built an early 5-up lead before Tech's Richy Werenski battled back and forced extra holes, winning 1-up over Bengtsson with a par on the par-5 first hole. J.T. Griffin topped senior Henrik Norlander 3-and-2 for the Yellow Jackets' other point. Griffin and Norlander's match, along with Haley and Newman's match, were rematches from 2010 at The Honors Course.
Newman rallied from an early deficit as Haley jumped to a 3-up lead through four holes. By the time the two left the ninth green, the match was all square as Newman won No. 7 and No. 8 with pars and wedged his approach on the par-5 ninth to a foot and tapped in for birdie to pull all square. He won the 10th with a par to go 1-up, lost the 12th to fall back to even and then moved back in front with a birdie at the 15th, hitting a 9-iron to seven feet and canning the putt. He gave the lead right back a hole later when his three-putt on No. 16 squared the match.
"I really wasn't that nervous today," Newman said. "I knew I had played well all week and just got off to a poor start. I was fighting for my teammates out there and didn't want this to be my last round of college golf."
Krywulycz jumped out to a quick start with an early 3-up lead over Kyle Scott through five holes. Scott answered with three wins in the next four holes and pulled all square as the two walked off the ninth green. Scott pulled in front with a par at the 13th before a Krywulycz birdie on the par-5 14th evened the match. The 15th and 16th were halved with pars before Krywulycz birdied the difficult par-4 17th to move in front.
"I always had that comfort that we were going to win," Krywulycz said. "It was the same kind of feeling as last year. You've just got to believe in your teammates."
Bengtsson will take on Oklahoma State's Talor Gooch at 11:45 a.m. (EST), followed by Newman and Sean Einhaus at 11:54, Krywulycz and Morgan Hoffman at 12:03, Norlander and Kevin Tway at 12:12. Reed will face 2010 U.S. Amateur champion Peter Uihlein at 12:21 p.m.
In Saturday's first match, No. 5 Georgia will take on No. 8 Duke at 11:00 a.m. (EST).
ASU is making its 12th appearance in the NCAA Championships in the last 19 years. Only a dozen other men's college golf programs in the nation can claim more appearances in that span than the Jags.
Tickets are $50 for an All-Session badge which covers all six days of competition. Any-session badges are available for $10. There is no charge for children 12 and under.
Live scoring of the NCAA Championships is available at http://www.ncaa.com/content/division-i-mens-team-leaderboard.
For complete results and Saturday's tee times, visit http://www.jaguarsroar.com/sports/mgolf/2010-11/files/Round_1_match.pdf andhttp://www.jaguarsroar.com/sports/mgolf/2010-11/files/match2_teetimes.pdf.
For a daily photo gallery, visit http://jaguarsroar.com/sports/mgolf/2010-11/photos/0014/index
To view the ASU Men's Golf postseason media guide, visit the following link:
http://www.jaguarsroar.com/sports/mgolf/2010-11/files/NCAAChampionshipsMediaGuide.pdf
For complete coverage of the NCAA Championships, visit the following links:
http://www.ncaa.com/sports/golf-men/d1
Augusta State captured the 2010 National Championship at The Honors Course in Ooltewah, Tenn., in an epic final match with 10-time National Champion Oklahoma State. The Jaguars defeated the top three seeds in match play on consecutive days, dispatching Georgia Tech (3-2), Florida State (4-1) and OSU (3-1-1).
ASU's Mitch Krywulycz rallied for a 4-down deficit to stun the Cowboys' Kevin Tway in 19 holes and win the clinching point for the Jags. Henrik Norlander and Patrick Reed accounted for ASU's other points in the championship match and earned the Jags their first national title in any varsity sport.
NOTEWORTHY … In the other matches, No. 8 seed Duke upended top-seeded UCLA 3.5 to 1.5, No. 5 Georgia topped No. 4 Illinois 3.5 to 1.5 and No. 3 Oklahoma State advanced past Ohio State 3.5- to 1.5 … Three of the eight teams who advanced to match play are from the state of Georgia (Georgia and Georgia Tech) … The ASU lineup of Krywulycz, Newman, Bengtsson, Reed and Norlander is playing together for just second time this season (NCAA Regionals was the other … Bengtsson played in four regular-season events, and was in the lineup on three occasions (Gifford Collegiate Championship, Battle at the Beach and Western Intercollegiate) … He played as an individual in the Insperity ASU Invitational (the Jags' home event), where he finished runnerup.
AMONG THE NATION'S ELITE ... Augusta State is the defending National Champion, but prior to their victory last June in the NCAA Championships, the Jaguars had made 11 appearances in the NCAA Championships in the last 18 years and was firmly established as one the nation's premiere college golf programs ... Since 1993 -- over the last 19 seasons -- only a dozen program nationwide can claim more trips to collegiate golf's grandest stage than ASU ... The Jags have qualified for the NCAA Regionals in 13 of the last 15 and 16 of the last 19 years ... This season, ASU made its fifth straight Regionals appearance ... The Jags enjoyed a stretch of eight consecutive trips to the NCAA Regionals from 1998-2005 ... From 2001 to 2005, the Jags registered four top-10 showings at the NCAA Championships -- seventh, fifth, seventh and 10th ... Prior to 2010, the Jags' fifth-place showing at Ohio State Golf Club's Scarlet Course in 2002 was the highest finish in school history at the NCAA Championships.
FOUR ... AND COUNTING ... Senior Henrik Norlander registered his fourth collegiate victory in the General Hackler Championship on March 14, 2011 at TPC Myrtle Beach in Murrells Inlet, S.C. ... Norlander fired a final-round, 5-under 67 as the Jaguars rallied from a 14-shot deficit to post a three-stroke win over Virginia ... As a junior, Norlander won the Jags' home event, the Administaff Augusta State Invitational, on April 4, 2010, with a 15-under 201 that included a final-round, 7-under 65, at Forest Hills Golf Club ... He captured two individual titles as a freshman in 2007-08.
IN THE BIG DANCE ... The Jaguars are making their 12th appearance in the NCAA Championships in the last 19 years, including its seventh in the last 11 years ... Only a dozen college golf programs have made more NCAA Championships appearances than ASU since 1993 ... The Jags' low team round in the NCAA Championships was a final-round, 3-under 281 in 2002 at Ohio State's Scarlet Course ... The best round by an ASU individual at the NCAA Championships has been a pair of 65's ... Sophomore Major Manning fired a 5-under 65 in the first round of the 2005 tourney at Caves Valley Golf Club ... Junior Jamie Elson shot a 7-under 65 in the second round of the 2001 Championships at Duke University Golf Club ... ASU's best individual finish was Elson's tie for second in 2001.
WHO EXACTLY IS AUGUSTA STATE? … ASU competes at the Division I level in men's and women's golf and participates at the Division II level in its nine other sports (men's and women's cross country, volleyball. men's and women's basketball, men's and women's tennis, softball and baseball) … ASU competed at the Division II level for 10 years, beginning in 1974, before joining the Big South Conference and gaining Division I status in the Fall of 1984 … The men's golf program has competed at the Division I level since then … When ASU returned to Division II and joined the Peach Belt Conference in the Fall of 1991, the men's golf program continued to compete at the Division I level as an independent under NCAA Bylaw 20.4.1.3 … The ASU women's golf program, which recently completed its 10th season with its second trip to the NCAA Regionals, competes in Division I as an independent as well.
UNDER JOSH GREGORY … ASU won the 2010 NCAA National Championship at The Honors Course in Ooltewah, Tenn. … ASU has advanced to eight NCAA Regionals and five NCAA Championships … ASU has claimed 17 tournament titles -- the most under one coach in school history … ASU set a new school record for lowest stroke average (286.76) in 2009-10 … ASU has been ranked as high as No. 2 during the 2002-03 and 2009-10 seasons … ASU has produced 10 All-Americans, 14 All-South Region selections, seven Palmer Cup picks, five Cleveland Golf All-America Scholars, two Walker Cup and one Ryder Cup picks.
VETERANS OF THE POSTSEASON ... ASU's NCAA Championships lineup has a combined 73 rounds of postseason experience ... Henrik Norlander has played 22 total rounds at the NCAA Regionals and Championships, while Mitch Krywulycz has logged 21 rounds, Carter Newman has 15, Patrick Reed has 12 and Olle Bengtsson made his postseason debut at the NCAA Southeast Regional in Ocala, Fla.
NORLANDER NAMED TO EUROPEAN PALMER CUP SQUAD ... ASU's Henrik Norlander was selected on April 20 to play for represent Sweden and play for Team Europe in the 2011 Palmer Cup ... The selection marks the third straight for Norlander ... The annual Ryder Cup-style competition between collegiate golfers from the U.S., and their counterparts from Europe will be played June 9-11 at The Stanwich Club in Greenwich, Conn. ... With a 13-11 victory last summer at Royal Portrush Golf Club in Portrush, Northern Ireland, the U.S. took a 7-6-1 lead in the all-time series ... A senior from Danderyd, Sweden, and the No. 14-ranked individual in the nation entering the postseason according to Golfweek, Norlander leads ASU with a 71.4 stroke average in 30 rounds over 10 tournaments ... He has tallied one victory this season at the General Hackler Championship on March 14 and has five top-10 and six top-20 finishes ... In 10 regular-season events (including the Western Refining College All-America Classic), his worst finish has been 25th ... With his selection, he is the seventh player to represent ASU in international amateur competition ... Previously, Robert Duck (England), Jamie Elson (England), Oliver Wilson (England), Kalle Edberg (Sweden), Scott Jamieson (Scotland) and Wallace Booth (Scotland) played for either Europe and/or Great Britain/Ireland in the Palmer Cup or Walker Cup.
INTERNATIONAL FLAVOR ... The Jaguars have a history of excelling with a combination of American and international standouts and this season is certainly no exception ... Of the Jags' 11-man roster, five players hail from outside the U.S. ... ASU has four Swedes (Olle Bengtsson, Jacob Carlsson, Henrik Norlander and Alex Wennstam) and an Aussie (Mitch Krywulycz) ... ASU's lineup for the NCAA Championships consists of two Georgians (Carter Newman and Patrick Reed), an Aussie (Krywulycz) and a pair of Swedes (Norlander and Bengtsson) ... In fact, of the six-pack of Americans on the Jags' roster, all six call the state of Georgia home.
JAGUARS ON TOUR ... ASU boasts an impressive collection of former players who are competing professionally around the world ... Most notably among the Jaguar alums are the PGA Tour's Vaughn Taylor and the European Tour's Oliver Wilson ... Taylor, a two-time winner on the Tour, was a member of the 2006 U.S. Ryder Cup team while Wilson made the European Ryder Cup squad in 2008 ... Wilson capped his amateur career by helping lead GB&I to victory in the 2003 Walker Cup at Ganton Golf Club in North Yorkshire, England ... ASU's first All-American, Richard Johnson, was a rookie on the PGA Tour in 2008 after graduating from the Nationwide Tour and winning the 2007 money title ... Former All-Americans Jamie Elson and Scott Jamieson are on the European Tour while another former All-American, Major Manning, is in his second season on the Nationwide Tour ... James Heath, Kalle Edberg and Wallace Booth compete on the European Challenge Tour.
113TH ANNUAL NCAA DIVISION I MEN'S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS
Karsten Creek Golf Club
Stillwater, Okla.
Hosted by Oklahoma State University
May 31-June 5, 2011
TEAMS
(Seeded by the NCAA in the following order)
1. Oklahoma State
2. UCLA
3. Alabama
4. Georgia Tech
5. Florida
6. AUGUSTA STATE
7. San Diego State
8. Texas A&M
9. Illinois
10. LSU
11. Texas
12. Georgia
13. Iowa
14. Duke
15. Michigan
16. Southern California
17. Arkansas
18. California
19. San Diego
20. North Carolina State
21. Oklahoma
22. Arizona State
23. Ohio State
24. Tennessee
25. Kent State
26. Kennesaw State
27. Pepperdine
28. Northwestern
29. Arizona
30. Colorado State
INDIVIDUALS
1. Jason Millard, Middle Tennessee State
2. Jace Long, Missouri
3. Lee Bedford, Wake Forest
4. Geoff Gonzalez, Cal Poly
5. Sebastian Soderberg, Coastal Carolina
6. Matt Hansen, UC Davis
