@UNC_MensGolf wins back-to-back Big Sky Championship

Sunday, April 28

Boulder City, Nev.

University of Northern Colorado

Big Sky Championship Day 3

4/28/2019 5:08:00 PM | Men's Golf

2019 Big Sky Men's Championship Final Results

UNC men's golf wins won its second straight Big Sky Championship

By: By Ryan Pfeifer, UNCBears.com

BOULDER CITY, Nev. – Northern Colorado men's golf made it back-to-back Big Sky Championships on Sunday, clinching the tournament by posting a 4-under, 284. The Bears held off a late charge from Weber State, who shot a 15-under, 273 on Sunday, winning the tournament by two strokes with a final score of 18-under, 846. To go with the second consecutive team championship, junior Coby Welch earned a spot on the All-Tournament team as he finished in fifth place shooting a 7-under, 209.

The best round of the day for Northern Colorado belonged to Nick Sharp. He shot a 3-under, 33 on the front nine, without a bogey on the scorecard. Sharp reached as low as 5-under for the round on the back nine, before settling at a 2-under, 70.

Veterans Welch and Joshua Matz both shot below par as well, each posting a 1-under, 71. Welch, clinched the win for UNC with his par on the 18th hole. Entering the final hole of play up one, he just needed to finish one stroke ahead of Weber State's Reese Fisher who was in his group to clinch the title. He was able to do so with a par, while Fisher put his tee shot into the water hazard and ended up with a bogey. Welch shot 1-under on the backside while sitting at even par at the turn.

Matz was 1-over at the turn but made birdies on 11 and 13 and did not have a bogey on the back nine to finish a 1-under, 71.

Li Chen shot an even-par 72 in the final round, while Jack Castiglia had a 1-over, 73.

Overall, UNC had four guys in the top 10 in Welch (5th, 209), Matz (T8th, 211) and Castiglia (T10th, 213).

Name (Place)	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Northern Colorado (1)	285	277	284	846
Coby Welch (5)	69	71	71	209
Joshua Matz (T8)	69	71	71	211
Jack Castiglia (T10)	71	69	72	213
Li Chen (T14)	75	69	72	216
Nick Sharp (T24)	76	75	70	221

Prenzlow's perspective
"It's a good thing we had some veterans out there to help us earn these back-to-back championships. It was a tight race coming in and we had some kids making some bogeys where we weren't expecting them, but then we made some birdies where we didn't expect them either. Overall, it evened out through the round. Weber State was really good all day. They were really good at the end and beginning with just a little bit of a rough patch in the middle of the round. They showed a lot of character in today's round. Scott (Erling) is a great coach, it was a lot of fun to watch them compete also. Our veterans stepped up in the end. I let Coby hit his tee shot the way he wanted to hit it, but then I stepped in and told him the situation we just needed to put it on the green and make a two-putt par to secure it. He did a great job of executing that. It was a great team weekend all around and now we look forward to competing in the NCAA Regionals."

Gallery: (4/28/2019) Men's Big Sky Championship Day 3

What's ahead
Northern Colorado now heads to its second straight NCAA Regional over May 12-15. The Bears will learn where they are going during the NCAA Selection Show on Wednesday, May 1. The show will be aired on the Golf Channel at 7 pm MDT.

To stay up to date on all things UNC men's golf, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNC_MensGolf.