University of Oregon
NCAA West Regional
LaVoie Advances to NCAA Championships
05/21/05 | Men's Golf
STANFORD, Calif. ? Oregon's Gregg LaVoie shot 1-over 71 to finish tied for 10th, and more importantly, earn one of two individual spots available to the NCAA Men's Golf Championships during the final round of the NCAA West Regional, played Saturday at the par-70, 6,742-yard Stanford Golf Course.
As a team, Oregon recorded the lowest round of the day, an even par 280, but it wasn't quite enough to make up for Friday's 18-over 298. The Ducks finished tied for 14th, six strokes out of the top 10. The top 10 teams plus the top two individuals advance to the NCAA Championships June 1-4 in Caves Valley, Md.
"We had a heck of a round today," said Oregon coach Steve Nosler. "It's too bad that we didn't have a better second round, but I'm really proud that these guys finished strong and represented Oregon the way they did."
Jay Snyder, the walk-on from British Columbia, added another chapter to his Cinderella spring by shooting a career-low 67 Saturday -- two strokes better than the 69 he fired at the Pac-10 Championships two weeks ago. The sophomore was brilliant with two birdies on the front nine and a pair on the back. Snyder's only mistake was a bogey on the final hole. He move up 45 places from his second round standing to finish tied for 61st at 220.
Justin St. Clair shot a steady even par 70 round that featured three birdies and three bogeys. The junior from Springfield, Ore., finished tied for 49th at 218. Chris Dukeminier, a junior from Eugene, Ore., carded a 2-over 72 and finished tied for 66th at 221.
While the team's effort highlighted Saturday's round, LaVoie was Oregon's story of the tournament. The junior from Pasco, Wash., played three of the most consistent rounds of anyone in the field with opening rounds of 70-70 backing Saturday's 71. In the final round, LaVoie had one bogey one the front side and two on the back, but he countered those with birdies on No. 11 and No. 16. He tied for 10th at 1-over 211 with Washington's Erik Olson. It was the highest NCAA Regional finish by a Duck since Aaron Byers tied for eighth in 2002.
"Gregg has got tremendous potential as a golfer and we've finally began to see that on a consistent basis this spring," said Nosler. "I hope this trip to the NCAA Championships where he will be competing against the best golfers in the country brings out the competitor in him and helps Gregg realize there's another level he can reach with his abilities. It is a privilege any time you get the opportunity to play for a national championship."
LaVoie becomes the first Duck to qualify for the NCAA Championships as an individual since Ben Crane in 1997. This will be LaVoie's second trip to the NCAA Championships overall. He competed as a freshman when Oregon advanced as a team in 2003.
Nevada-Las Vegas shot a final round 288 to win the regional by three strokes at 846. New Mexico was second at 849, with Washington (854), UCLA (857), Arizona State (857), Brigham Young (858), San Diego State (860), Arizona (863) and Stanford (863) also advancing to the NCAA Championships. USC, Pepperdine and South Carolina all tied for 10th at 864, and USC won a playoff to earn the final ticket to Caves Valley.
Auburn was 13th at 869 and Oregon and Saint Mary's tied for 14th at 870.
Rob Grube of Stanford shot a career-low 65 to win the individual title at 6-under 204.
NCAA West Regional
Stanford Golf Course
Stanford, Calif.
Second Round
6,742 yards, par 70
Team Scores - 1, Nevada-Las Vegas, 281-277-288-846. 2, New Mexico, 284-284-281-849. 3, Washington, 286-282-286-854. T4, UCLA, 288-288-281-857; Arizona State, 290-281-286-857. 6, Brigham Young, 278-284-296-858. 7, San Diego State, 286-290-284-860. T8, Arizona, 283-296-284-863; Stanford, 289-291-283-863. T10, Pepperdine, 279-292-293-864; USC, 286-292-286-864; South Carolina, 289-288-287-864. 13, Auburn, 290-293-284-869. T14, Oregon, 292-298-280-870; Saint Mary's, 295-285-290-870. 16, Denver, 294-296-283-873. 17, UC Riverside, 295-290-297-882. 18, South Alabama, 295-297-291-883. 19, Fresno State, 295-299-292-886. 20, Colorado State, 303-302-285-809. 21, Texas-Arlington, 297-307-294-898. 22, Cal Poly, 297-307-297-901. 23, Illinois State, 303-309-292-904. 24, Louisiana State, 294-301-311-906. 25, Princeton, 306-301-301-908. 26, Samford, 312-302-299-913. 27, Central Connecticut State, 302-317-301-920.
Top Ten Individuals -- 1, Rob Grube, Stanford, 69-70-65-204, T2, Kevin Chappell, UCLA, 71-67-69-207; Nathan Lashley, Arizona, 66-72-69-207. 4, Oscar Alvarez, Brigham, Young, 63-71-74-208. 5, Pat Moore, Arizona State, 69-69-71-209. T6, Spencer Levin, New Mexico, 72-71-67-210; Ryan Moore, Nevada-Las Vegas, 69-69-72-210; Madalitso Muthiya, New Mexico, 69-70-71-210; Gilberto Rodriguez, San Diego State, 69-74-67-210. T10, Gregg LaVoie, Oregon, 70-70-71-211; Erik Olson, Washington, 69-70-72-211.
Other Oregon Individuals - T49, Justin St. Clair, 72-76-70-218. T61, Jay Snyder, 76-77-67-220. T66, Chris Dukeminier, 74-75-71-221. T128, Matt Ma, 77-82-77-237.
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Players Mentioned
