Ferris State Men's Golf Finishes Ninth In The Nation At NCAA D2 National Championships
Big Rapids, Mich. - The Ferris State University men's golf team competed action at the 2024 NCAA Division II National Championships on Thursday (May 23) at the Orange County National Golf Center, placing ninth overall in the country in Winter Garden, Fla.
The Bulldogs had a strong final round, shooting even par with a 284 team score over the final 18 holes of action. FSU finished ninth overall at 857 or +5 for the 54-hole tournament held on the par 71 course measuring 7,419 yards. The D2 National Championships were held in conjunction with the Division II Spring Sports Festival in the Orlando area.
The top eight teams following the 54-hole stroke play portion of the national championships advanced to the head-to-head national quarterfinals and FSU narrowly missed the field. The Bulldogs were in contention to finish in the top eight throughout the final round finished only four shots behind eighth-place finisher West Texas A&M (+1). The team champion was West Florida, which carded a 14-under par score for the tournament.
"It was an incredible season by an impressive group of young men, who represented our program and our university with class, dedication and grit," said FSU head coach Sam Stark. "We were disappointed to fall a bit short of match play, but never disappointed in the effort by this group."
Individually, Ferris State's Nathan Kraynyk finished as the national runner-up, tying for second place overall on the individual leaderboard with a 206 tournament figure. He carded a 67 in the final round after shooting a 70 in round one and a 69 in round two.
"What a week of golf for this Dawg," said Stark. "He was an absolute incredible competitor and gave everything he had for his teammates throughout his Bulldog career."
Meanwhile, FSU's Caleb Bond and Zach Koerner both tied for 37th on the leaderboard with 216 tournament totals. Bond shot a 76 in the final round while Koerner closed with an even-par 71 figure.
The Bulldogs' McCoy Biagioli finished tied for 77th with a 222 total, notching a 73 in the final round. Finally, Sam Havey also carded a 73 in round three and placed tied for 83rd in the field with a 223 figure.
The 2024 NCAA D2 Championships were held as part of the Division II Spring Sports Festival in the Orlando area. The Bulldogs were one of 20 team from across the country competing for the national championship in men's golf.
The Bulldogs earned their trip to the national championships after coming away with a fifth-place team finish at the NCAA D2 Midwest/Central Super Regional Championships that wrapped up on May 11 in Edmond, Okla. FSU shot a final-round 277 team figure and finished at 834 or six-under for the 54-hole super regional tournament to earn its spot in the national championships.
This year's national championships berth represented FSU's 17th all-time in program history and first since 2019. The finals were hosted by Rollins College and the Greater Orlando Sports Commission.
Ferris State's ninth-place team finish is the the program's best since 2017 when the Bulldogs earned runner-up honors in the 2017 NCAA-II Midwest/Central Super Regional in Kearney, Neb., before going on to a national quarterfinal finish. In 2019, the Bulldogs placed tied for third at the super regional and reached the NCAA D2 National Championships, placing 20th overall.
This year also marked the 19th time in the past 21 years in which the Bulldogs had representation in the NCAA Tournament when it has been held. The stretch of NCAA Championship representation in men's golf ranks as one of the best stretches in the country.
Ferris State also captured its 22nd all-time GLIAC Championship by beating rival Grand Valley State in the league finale on April 14 in Augusta, Mich.
Visit the link below for complete results from the NCAA D2 National Championships:
https://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=team&tid=29189