DENVER –
Zach Tripp matched his career-best with a 68 and
Kyle Southard shot a 2-under-par 70 today as the University of Colorado Colorado Springs finished sixth at the NCAA Division II National Preview at Green Valley Ranch Golf Club. The Mountain Lions shot a 2-over-par 290 to climb four spots in today's final round and finished with a tournament score of 874 for 10-over-par.
Tripp finished the tournament with back-to-back birdies and finished only one hole worse than par today. His 4-under-par 68 matched his career-best set in the second round at the Western New Mexico Mustang Intercollegiate on April 6, 2015. Tripp's 209 for 7-under-par for the tournament was his best by a stroke, also at the Mustang Intercollegiate. He finished in a four-way tie for second and the group was two strokes behind the winner, Alistair Docherty of Chico State.
Kyle Southard also finished the tournament with back-to-back birdies and was 3-under-par on the final four holes for a 2-under-par 70 today. It was the best round of his career. He placed No. 19 overall in the tournament with a score of 215 at 1-under-par, a two-stroke improvement on his career-best in the Western New Mexico Fall Intercollegiate on Sept. 29-30, 2014.
Blake Young turned in the third team score for the Mountain Lions with a 3-over-par 75. He opened the round with a birdie on hole 9 and then used a birdie on hole 4 to pull his score back to 3-over.
Colin Prater and
Zach Berhost both finished today with scores of 77 for 5-over-par for the final team scores of the day. Prater finished in a tie for No. 39 overall after a 5-over-par 221.
UCCS was the top RMAC team and the top team from the South Central Region by a five-stroke margin. The Mountain Lions were six strokes behind 2015 national semifinalist Central Missouri for fifth in the standings. Chico State won the team title with a 20-under-par 844. The Mountain Lions were the second-best team in the tournament for the par-3 holes.
UCCS will be back in action for a third straight week in the Western New Mexico Regional Preview Sept. 28-29. The tournament will be held at the New Mexico State University Golf Course, which will be the site for the West/South Central Region Championships in May.
