Wittenberg men’s golf team wins national championship

The Wittenberg University men’s golf team won its first national championship on Friday.

The 10th-ranked Tigers edged Guilford College (Greensboro, N.C.) by two strokes (1,180-1,182) to win the NCAA Division III tournament at Mission Inn Resort and Club at Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla.

🏆2017 Division III Men's Golf National Champions🏆 - @WittAthletics pic.twitter.com/VucISaMEM5— NCAA Division III (@NCAADIII) May 19, 2017

Senior Garrett Brickley led Wittenberg with a runner-up finish in the 72-hole tournament. Brickley birdied the final two holes to card a final-round 68 and finish at 1-under-par 287. He lost a one-hole playoff to Josh Gibson of Hope College for the individual title. Brickley’s finish is the highest in program history.

Other members of the championship team for Wittenberg were Cameron Willis (T-18th, 297), Sam Stillwell (T-24th, 298), Colin Laszlo (41st, 303) and Mark David Wright (42nd, 304).

Second-ranked Texas at Tyler was third, eight shots back. Top-ranked Huntingdon College and Greensboro tied for fourth, 10 shots behind Wittenberg.

Under coach Jeff Roope, Wittenberg had finished third the last two years and fifth in 2013. It was their eighth straight appearance in the national tournament. Roope led the Tigers to their eighth straight North Coast Athletic Conference championship and was named a finalist for national coach of the year earlier this week.

The national title is Wittenberg’s first since the women’s volleyball team won it all in 2011.

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