May 31, 2008

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Led by sophomore Corey Nagy, the Charlotte 49ers men's golf team shot the second-best round of the day to finish tied for 8th at the 2008 NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships at the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex - Kampen Course.

The 49ers, who fired a final round of +15, 303, placed in the top 10 at the NCAA Championships for the second straight year. Charlotte is one of just four teams to finish in top 10 in each of the last two years, joining UCLA, Stanford and Georgia.

UCLA won the 2008 National Championship by one stroke over Stanford. UCLA finished at +42, following a final round of +18. Stanford (+43) had the best round of the day at +14, to come within a stroke of repeating as national champions.

Sophomore Corey Nagy paced the 49ers with a round of +1, 73, to finish tied for 16th, overall, at +11, 299. His 16th-place finish is the second-best by a 49er at the National Championship. Teammate Andrew DiBitetto placed ninth at the 2007 National Championship.

"I thought I played solidly (all week). I did have three holes that really hurt me," Nagy said, noting his three triple bogeys over the four rounds. "Today was pretty pure. This course is just tough. I thought I did a good job of hanging in there. I made a couple of birdies, which is key, because on this course you need some insurance birdies."

Senior Trevor Murphy added a +2, 74 and junior Stefan Wiedergruen shot a +3, 75. Senior Jonas Enander Hedin closed with a +9, 81 and senior Andrew DiBitetto had a +12, 84.

"Corey's round today was simply terrific. In fact anyone who shot a 75 or under, including Trevor and Stefan, that was an impressive round of golf today," head coach Jamie Green said. "To know we ended the day with the second-best round of the day -- I'm very proud of these guys for turning in a round like that. Our guys always just try to play as well as they can and if they are disappointed it's because they know they didn't play their best golf (this week). But to think they still finished in the top 10 in the country when they were not playing their best golf says alot about how far you've come and where you are."

Charlotte is one of just nine teams in the country to make the 30-team NCAA field in each of the last three years. They are one of seven teams to make the 15-team cut at the last two NCAA Championships and are now one of four teams to land top 10 finishes in each of the past two years. Charlotte won a school record six tournaments this season and have won 17 tournaments in the four-year careers of seniors DiBitetto, Enander Hedin and Murphy.

"To see where this program has gone with those three seniors doing it year after year after year -- I couldn't be more thankful and I know everyone at Charlotte feels the same," Green said. "When you look at (the success) they have been a part of, you realize it's not in the scores, but how hard they have worked and how much they have gotten better because of it. They thank me a lot, but I can't thank them enough for how hard they worked when nobody else is looking to become as good as they've become. To be here three years in a row and to play on the final day two years in a row -- when they look back and realize that there are not a lot of players that can say that, they'll see just how special it is."

To be sure, at the final competition of the year and the final competition of the three seniors' careers, there is a lot of looking back.

"It's sad seeing my three best friends making their final putt," Nagy noted. "They have left some pretty big shoes to fill."

For their part, Nagy and Wiedergruen will do their best to start filling them.

While Nagy placed 16th, Wiedergruen finished 21st at +13, 301. Murphy placed tied for 33rd.

"Stefan's first national championship and what a great experience for him," Green said. "He played very solidly on this golf course. For he and Corey to finish (so high), that says an awful lot about their game and their competitiveness."