Wildcats Headed to NCAA National Championships! NU Places Second at Regional
May 20, 2006
Final NCAA Central Regional Results
CHARDON, Ohio -- All year long, Northwestern head coach Pat Goss has repeated that this year's Wildcat team might be one of the most balanced groups he has coached in his 10-year history with the program. That statement never rang truer than this week when a steady team effort at the NCAA Central Regional Championship propelled the 'Cats to their 22nd all-time NCAA National Championships appearance. Paced by their No. 4 and 5 golfers on Saturday, the Wildcats finished second -- the same position they held after the first and second rounds -- among the 27 teams and earned one of the coveted 10 berths to the NCAA National Championships, which will be held Wednesday through Saturday, May 31-June 3 in Sunriver, Ore. Sophomore Dan Doyle (Rochester, Mich./Stoney Creek), the Wildcats' No. 5 golfer, turned in one of Saturday's best rounds -- a 2-under 69 -- to help Northwestern fend off top-10 programs Texas A&M (No. 6) and Georgia Tech (No. 4) and remain in second place. The Wildcats' final-round 287 was tied for the third-best team score of the day. Doyle finished with a 5-over 218 (73-76-69) and in 20th place -- one of four Wildcats to place in the top 20. Northwestern was the only school in the Central Regional to place four golfers in the top 20. "We did get a great effort from our entire lineup this weekend," said Goss. "I've felt all along that we could play with the top teams in the country, and we showed it this week. Now we're ready to prove ourselves at the national level later this month."
As a team, the Wildcats, the No. 9 seed, finished 16 strokes back of top seed and second-ranked Oklahoma State, but six strokes in front of A&M and Georgia Tech, who tied for third place. Minnesota, one of two other Big Ten teams competing in the Regional,
finished sixth and will join the Wildcats at the Crosswater Golf Course in Sunriver starting May 31.
Sophomore Kyle Moore (Dublin, Ohio/Scioto), who led NU on Saturday with a 1-under 70, carded an even-par 71 on Saturday and finished in a fourth-place tie with a 1-over 214 (73-70-71). Junior Chris Wilson (Dublin, Ohio/Coffman), the other half of the 'Cats' "Dublin Duo," also finished fourth with a 1-over 214 (67-74-73). Wilson was the individual leader after Thursday's first round with his 4-under 67. Junior David Merkow (Hartland, Wis./Arrowhead Union), the 2006 Big Ten Golfer of the Year, was the fourth 'Cat to make the top 20, shooting a 3-over 216 (68-73-75) -- good enough for 12th place in the 141-player field. Senior Dillon Dougherty (Woodland, Calif./Woodland) rounded out the NU contingent with a 10-over 223 (73-76-74). For the Wildcats, this will be their fifth trip to the NCAA National Championships under Goss. NU made four consecutive trips from 1997 to 2000, placing seventh, 19th, third and fourth, respectively. Final results for the NCAA Central Regional are available at NCAA Central Regional Men's Golf Championships. |
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