Texas Tech University Athletics
Texas Tech Athletics
at NCAA Championship
Lakatta's Ace Highlights Red Raiders' Third Round
June 02, 2006 | Men's Golf
June 2, 2006
SUNRIVER, Ore. - A rare hole-in-one by freshman Brandon Lakatta sparked an early-round surge by the Texas Tech men's golf team, but the team could not continue the rally back to contention as the Red Raiders shot a round of 305 on Friday to end play in 27th place at the NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championship. The Red Raiders are elminated from the tournament as only the top 15 teams will move on to Saturday's fourth and final round at the Crosswater Golf Course.
"We started out the round very promising but then ran into some bad holes and could not keep up the pace," said head coach Greg Sands. "I'm still very proud of our guys; this has been a great season and I don't think that this tournament has been a true indication of our talent level."
Lakatta started his round on a blistering pace, collecting birdies on each of the first two holes before stepping to the tee box of the par-three third hole. Using an eight-iron, Lakatta unleashed a perfect tee shot that found the bottom of the cup for the first hole-in-one by a Red Raider since the spring of 2003 season when Brad Jacobson accomplished the feat.
The freshman from Mansfield, Texas, could not continue his torrid pace after the ace, finishing with a 77 on the day.
Fellow rookie Jake Younan-Wise, who had led the team in the previous two rounds at the Championships, struggled for much of the day on Friday, finishing with a 10-over par 82. The Kingscliff, Australia, native ended the tournament in a tie for 92nd place with a three-round total of 223.
Senior Andrew Dresser finished his Texas Tech career as the team's highest finisher in 63rd place after firing a final round 71. Junior Oscar Floren ended play seven-over par with a tournament score of 223 after turning in a scorecard of 77 on Friday.
Freshman Santiago Rivas rounded out the Tech contingency at the event with a 234, which included a final round 80.
The Washington Huskies will enter Saturday's final round in the overall lead with a team score of seven-under par at the event, holding a three-shot advantage over Oklahoma State, Wake Forest and Arizona State. OSU's Jonathan Moore is the field's individual leader with a three-round total of 207 after firing a third-round 69.
