UHH earns berth in NCAA II Tournament
Advertiser Staff
The University of Hawai'i-Hilo men's golf team qualified for the NCAA Division II Championships yesterday with a third-place finish in the Northwest/West Super Regional at Dakota Dunes, S.D.
The Vulcans, led by Nick Mason's runner-up finish for medalist honors, shot a final-round aggregate score of 300 to finish at 915. Western Washington won with 895. Also qualifying out of the West were Chico State (902), Cal State Bakersfield (918) and St. Martin's (918).
Mason shot a final-round 1-under-par 71 to finish a stroke behind Western Washington's Tim Feenstra, who also shot 71 yesterday.
The nationals will be held May 17 to 20 in Savannah, Ga.
Controversy at WAC
University of Hawai'i junior Jarett Hamamoto shot a final-round 1-over-par 73 yesterday to finish in a tie for fourth at the Western Athletic Conference Championships, which ended in controversy at Choudrant, La.
Hamamoto finished at 221, seven strokes behind medalist Will Dodson of Southern Methodist. Dodson closed with a 1-under 71 to beat runner-up David Kim of San Jose State by five strokes.
The Warriors finished seventh in the 10-team field with a 921 total. SMU and Tulsa finished regulation play tied at 889 when Tulsa sophomore Brett Myers bogeyed the final hole and Dodson parred it.
Conference rules call for the team championship to be decided by a sudden-death playoff at the conclusion of regular play. Tulsa coach Bill Brogden and SMU coach Jay Loar agreed to share the championship, but league officials held steadfast on the ruling for a playoff.
Brogden then elected to forfeit the playoff because of travel time concerns, thus giving SMU the title. If the Hurricane missed yesterday's flight home they would have had to wait until tomorrow, thus jeopardizing final exams that began today.
"Our guys played well today, and SMU played well. It was tied at the end, and I didn't see the value in going to a playoff under the circumstances that faced us, of missing a flight and with guys having final exams on Thursday," Brogden said. "SMU and coach Loar was good with the idea of sharing the title. I hated to have to do this, but it was something I felt we had to do."
Kops to defend titles
Brandan Kop will defend his championship at the 2005 Mamala Bay Hickam Air Force Base Invitational. The all-amateur event tees off at 6:30 a.m. tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday. The field will be cut by more than half after Saturday's second round.
Kop closed with a 5-under-par 67 last year. His 54-hole total of 8-under 208 was five better than Mark Chun, the 2003 Hickam champion. Chun is not in the 56-player championship flight this year, but Kaua'i's Shannan Sibayan, the wire-to-wire winner in 2002, is entered.
Del-Marc Fujita, Clayton Gomi and Chris Souza are also in the championship flight. Souza won Amatour Hawai'i's first 2005 stop, "The Grind at Hawai'i Prince," Sunday with a tour-record 6-under 138 total. Souza closed with a 67.
Wendell Kop, Brandan's uncle, is the defending senior champion.
6,000 raised for Lunas
The second annual Bash 'N Scramble at the Ka'anapali Golf Courses last December raised more than $6,000 for the Lahainaluna High School athletic department.
The money will help pay for transportation and equipment.
