College golf: SSU finishes 7th at NCAA Division II Championship

The Sonoma State men’s golf season came to an end Thursday in the first-round match play portion of the NCAA Division II Championship at Avalon Lakes Country Club in Warren, Ohio.

The Seawolves fell as the No. 7 seed to No. 2 seed Barry 4-0-1 in match play to finish seventh overall in the nation, the program’s best finish since 2010. Senior Jules Lavigne shot three-over par 75 to force the one tie in the five head-to-head matches.

Individual play wrapped up Wednesday with Colin Huang recording the best finish for the Seawolves.

He finished one-under par for the three-round tournament, including a three-under par 69 in the final round, to finish tied for 11th overall in the field. It’s the best individual finish for an SSU golfer since Patrick Bauer placed third in SSU’s national championship season in 2009.

Griffin Pace finished tied for 18th at one-over par, Alec Padillia tied for 33rd at three-over par, Lavigne tied for 59th at eight-over par and Aiden Oliver tied for 103rd at 27-over par.

“I’ve told so many people that this group was like a bunch of embers and it just needed the right wind, the right spark, to catch fire and turn into something special,” SSU head coach Val Verhunce said in a media release. “I know it’s a bit disappointing to exit earlier than we would have liked, but we still put together one of the program’s best finishes in over a decade and I’m really proud of this group and the way they fought all year long.”

You can reach Staff Writer Gus Morris at 707-304-9372 or gus.morris@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @JustGusPD.