Completed Event: Men's Golf at N.I.T. on January 26, 2026 , , 11th of 13
M Golf
at N.I.T.
11th of 13
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Photo by: David Kadlubowski
Lopes tied for 1st entering WAC Championship final round
4/28/2023 5:24:00 PM | Men's Golf
GCU shoots field-best 15 under par; all Lopes rank in tourney's top 15
BOULDER CITY, Nev. – The Grand Canyon men's golf team surged into a tie for first place at the WAC Championship on Saturday with the third-best team score in the school's Division I era, recording two eagles and 21 birdies as the Lopes head to Sunday's final round at Boulder Creek Golf Club with a chance at the title.
GCU's 273 was good for 15 under par, matching the Lopes' 273 in the spring of 2017 for the program's third-lowest round since 2013-14. GCU jumped two spots into a tie for first with New Mexico State at 23 under par. Sam Houston is third at 17 under with Seattle fourth at 15 under.
The Lopes only bogeyed 11 times to pave the way to one of the best scores in recent seasons, as the team orchestrated nine birdies and two eagles on the front nine combined. The back nine consisted of just four bogeys and 12 birdies, four of which were by junior Nicky Kling with fifth-year senior Parker Reddig and junior Tommaso Zorzetto each making three on the back nine.
"Today was a lot of fun to be a part of as a coach," GCU head coach Mark Mueller said. "It was great to see these guys play as well as they did and to play with confidence and putt with confidence. One through five did an outstanding job with a great start and just kept rolling from there."
Sophomore Sam Murphy leads the Lopes at 6 under par and is tied for fourth overall. After an opening-hole bogey, Murphy settled in for four birdies over the ensuing seven holes and had five total for the day to shoot 4 under in the second round. Murphy heads into Sunday in the field's final pairing with a tee time of 9:40 a.m. (Phoenix time).
Kling had the group's best Saturday score at 5 under par as he eagled for the second straight day and had one bogey to his four birdies on the back nine. Kling is tied for 11th at 4 under par overall.
Joining Kling at 4 under is senior Matthew Braley and Reddig. A part of the field's final pairing Saturday, Braley had three birdies and shot 1 over for the round. Reddig joined Kling with an eagle as he shot a three on No. 5 and tallied three birdies over his final five holes.
Zorzetto matched Kling for best back nine on the squad, shooting an even-par front nine followed by par-birdie-par-birdie-par-birdie between holes 10-15 to shoot 3 under. Zorzetto is tied for 15th at 3 under overall as all the Lopes are in the top 15 heading into the final 18.
New Mexico State's Garrison Smith leads the field at 15 under with Sam Houston's Bret Gray in second at 10 under.
"Tomorrow, this is what you play for," Mueller said of the final round. "There are a lot of really good teams in the WAC, and it's still anyone's ballgame, but we are right in the mix. This is right where the guys want to be and we just have to play loose, play with confidence and have fun while doing so."
Since being eligible to win the WAC Championship in 2018 after the transition period from Division II to Division I from 2013-17, GCU seeks its first WAC Championship title as it has placed second twice. The Lopes tee off Sunday at 9 a.m. (Phoenix time) with the final pairing going off 40 minutes later.
Live scoring of the tournament can be found here. Follow @GCU_MGOLF on Twitter and Instagram for live updates of the third and final round.
Sam Houston leads the tournament at 14 under par with New Mexico State second at 11 under par. GCU is well within reach and was 6 under through nine holes after a barrage of birdies on the front nine. Sam Houston and New Mexico State each tallied three eagles on the back nine with Lopes junior Nicky Kling recording one of the 18 eagles made in the first round.
Playing in his final WAC Championship, Braley is leading the charge for the Lopes at 5 under par with five birdies and 13 pars for his day. Braley is tied for fourth and sits three strokes off Garrison Smith of New Mexico State for the lead. Braley played the first five holes at 3 under and tallied two birdies over the final six holes.
Not far behind Braley is Murphy, who is tied for 12th at 2 under. Murphy birdied holes Nos. 4 and 5 and bounced back from a double bogey on No. 7 with three birdies on the back nine. One shot back of Murphy is Reddig at 1 under (tied for 16th). Reddig was 3 under through 11 holes before finishing the day with a 71.
Kling and Zorzetto rounded out the starting five, with Zorzetto tied for 21st at even and Kling tied for 33rd at 1 over. Zorzetto rallied four birdies between the fifth and 11th holes, while Kling had the team's best hole of the day, an eagle on No. 13.
GCU's 273 was good for 15 under par, matching the Lopes' 273 in the spring of 2017 for the program's third-lowest round since 2013-14. GCU jumped two spots into a tie for first with New Mexico State at 23 under par. Sam Houston is third at 17 under with Seattle fourth at 15 under.
The Lopes only bogeyed 11 times to pave the way to one of the best scores in recent seasons, as the team orchestrated nine birdies and two eagles on the front nine combined. The back nine consisted of just four bogeys and 12 birdies, four of which were by junior Nicky Kling with fifth-year senior Parker Reddig and junior Tommaso Zorzetto each making three on the back nine.
"Today was a lot of fun to be a part of as a coach," GCU head coach Mark Mueller said. "It was great to see these guys play as well as they did and to play with confidence and putt with confidence. One through five did an outstanding job with a great start and just kept rolling from there."
Sophomore Sam Murphy leads the Lopes at 6 under par and is tied for fourth overall. After an opening-hole bogey, Murphy settled in for four birdies over the ensuing seven holes and had five total for the day to shoot 4 under in the second round. Murphy heads into Sunday in the field's final pairing with a tee time of 9:40 a.m. (Phoenix time).
Kling had the group's best Saturday score at 5 under par as he eagled for the second straight day and had one bogey to his four birdies on the back nine. Kling is tied for 11th at 4 under par overall.
Joining Kling at 4 under is senior Matthew Braley and Reddig. A part of the field's final pairing Saturday, Braley had three birdies and shot 1 over for the round. Reddig joined Kling with an eagle as he shot a three on No. 5 and tallied three birdies over his final five holes.
Zorzetto matched Kling for best back nine on the squad, shooting an even-par front nine followed by par-birdie-par-birdie-par-birdie between holes 10-15 to shoot 3 under. Zorzetto is tied for 15th at 3 under overall as all the Lopes are in the top 15 heading into the final 18.
New Mexico State's Garrison Smith leads the field at 15 under with Sam Houston's Bret Gray in second at 10 under.
"Tomorrow, this is what you play for," Mueller said of the final round. "There are a lot of really good teams in the WAC, and it's still anyone's ballgame, but we are right in the mix. This is right where the guys want to be and we just have to play loose, play with confidence and have fun while doing so."
Since being eligible to win the WAC Championship in 2018 after the transition period from Division II to Division I from 2013-17, GCU seeks its first WAC Championship title as it has placed second twice. The Lopes tee off Sunday at 9 a.m. (Phoenix time) with the final pairing going off 40 minutes later.
Live scoring of the tournament can be found here. Follow @GCU_MGOLF on Twitter and Instagram for live updates of the third and final round.
Day 1 recap
Accustomed to the dry-heat temperatures at its home course in Phoenix, the GCU men's golf team traveled about 4 1/2 hours to Boulder City, Nevada, for the three-day WAC Championship at Boulder Creek Golf Club. With weather in the upper 90s and clear skies on Friday, the Lopes used that familiar weather to its advantage with one of their best rounds of the season, shooting 8 under par with 20 birdies to sit in third place through 18 holes.Sam Houston leads the tournament at 14 under par with New Mexico State second at 11 under par. GCU is well within reach and was 6 under through nine holes after a barrage of birdies on the front nine. Sam Houston and New Mexico State each tallied three eagles on the back nine with Lopes junior Nicky Kling recording one of the 18 eagles made in the first round.
Playing in his final WAC Championship, Braley is leading the charge for the Lopes at 5 under par with five birdies and 13 pars for his day. Braley is tied for fourth and sits three strokes off Garrison Smith of New Mexico State for the lead. Braley played the first five holes at 3 under and tallied two birdies over the final six holes.
Not far behind Braley is Murphy, who is tied for 12th at 2 under. Murphy birdied holes Nos. 4 and 5 and bounced back from a double bogey on No. 7 with three birdies on the back nine. One shot back of Murphy is Reddig at 1 under (tied for 16th). Reddig was 3 under through 11 holes before finishing the day with a 71.
Kling and Zorzetto rounded out the starting five, with Zorzetto tied for 21st at even and Kling tied for 33rd at 1 over. Zorzetto rallied four birdies between the fifth and 11th holes, while Kling had the team's best hole of the day, an eagle on No. 13.
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