PALM BEACH GARDENS, FL- The Cougars began match play on Thursday morning as they squared off with a familiar foe in Oklahoma Christian. After beating the Eagles for the second straight season by a score of 3.5-1.5, CCU advanced to play #3 North Georgia in a National Title rematch from last season. Colorado Christian used poise and grittiness to battle through several lightning delays and made a comeback to defeat the Nighthawks 4-1 as the final three matches wrapped up Friday morning due to darkness.
MATCH PLAY ROUND ONE VS. OKLAHOMA CHRISTIAN
Xavier Bighaus was up first in match one, and he battled back from an early deficit, taking the lead on hole seven and never looking back as he rolled to a five stroke victory with a 74 on four birdies.
Sangha Park had his work cut out for him as he faced off with the reigning Jack Nicklaus Player of the Year in Leandro Mihaich. The graduate student did not flinch as a birdie on hole two put him ahead and he never looked back as he stayed steady and claimed a one stroke win with a 71 with four birdies.
Peyton Jones jumped ahead early through three holes, but his opponent turned a switch on hole six and ran away with the victory as Jones finished with an 84.
Sungyeop Cho found himself in a battle as the lead changed hands four times throughout the round. Both golfers led by as many as two strokes, but in the end the pair tied with an overall score of 73 as Cho picked up half a point.
Adam Duncan put the finishing touches on the hard fought victory as he took a lead on hole seven and never trailed from there. The senior used three birdies to secure the victory with a 72 as the Cougars advanced to the semifinals with a 3.5-1.5 victory over the Eagles.
MATCH PLAY SEMIFINALS VS. NORTH GEORGIA
Colorado Christian then prepared for a hungry North Georgia team that was intent on avenging last seasons' National Title defeat at the hands of the Cougars. The Nighthawks came out firing to start, but after several lightning delays and darkness forced the final three matches to be finished Friday, CCU made the comeback to punch their ticket to the title match for the second consecutive season.
Bighaus was the first off the tee box, and he quickly found himself down to Jack Vajda from the outset. The experienced senior did not let the deficit discourage him as he trailed by four strokes after nine holes of play. Trailing by three heading into hole 15, Xavier began to make his move as a par and consecutive birdies suddenly saw the match go even. Bighaus closed the incredible comeback on the 556 yard hole 18, smashing his drive and putting his iron shot on the green as he sank the ensuing putt for an eagle to clinch the match by one stroke with a 71.
Duncan trailed early in his match, but he once again took a lead and did not trail the rest of the way. A consistent 72 from the senior saw him take the point and put his team up 2-0 before the final three matches were called for the day due to darkness and forced to be resumed Friday.
Jones finished 16 holes of play on Thursday and finished up 17 and 18 on Friday as he fell to his opponent to drop a point.
Cho also made it through 16 holes on Thursday, and he earned himself a healthy lead of five strokes heading into the final two holes, closing out the win with four birdies and an eagle for a 67.
Park put the finishing touches on the win as he took down the individual National Champion Hunter Smith with an incredibly impressive performance. Playing the final three holes Friday, Sangha closed it out with an eagle on 18 for a 64 to down his opponent by a whopping seven strokes and send his team to their second straight National Title match with a 4-1 victory.
Colorado Christian will face off against #2 West Florida in the title match today as they seek to make it back-to-back National Championships.
