IU plays spoiler, grabs 3 wins at Match Play Championship

With the Cinderella stories of Cornell, Northern Iowa and St. Mary’s capturing the March Madness headlines, it was only fitting that the Collegiate Match Play Championship had its own glass slipper team — the Hoosiers.

IU coach Mike Mayer and the men’s golf team went 3-1 in four matches, including wins against two top-25 teams during the three-day tournament in Marana, Ariz.

The Hoosiers opened the tournament seeded 16th in the 16-team field and gave No. 2-ranked Stanford all they could handle in the first round before losing 3-2.
Sophomore Chase Wright and freshman Brant Peaper recorded wins against the Cardinals.

Matches involving senior Alex Martin and junior Ren Han both went down to the final hole, but the Hoosiers were unable to finish off the upset in either match.

“We put a lot into the Stanford match, and I think it was a let down not winning that match,” Mayer said.

After heading to the consolation bracket, the Hoosiers bounced back by defeating Texas Christian University 3-2.

Wright and Peaper recorded wins for the second straight match, and Martin won his match in extra holes.

TCU is ranked No. 22 in the nation and the win set up another match up with a perennial power in No. 5 UCLA.

Martin and sophomores David Erdy and Wright, the top three players in the Hoosiers’ lineup, carried the squad with three wins against the Bruins.

The wins were the second and third wins against top 25 teams this year and will be crucial come NCAA Tournament time.

The Hoosiers won their final match up of the week on Tuesday, knocking off No. 40 Arizona 3-2.  All four matches IU played in this week were not decided until the final hole, with all three ending in scores of 3-2.

“We got three quality wins against national opponents and this will help our RPI and our ranking,” Mayer said.

IU was one of only two teams at the Collegiate Match Play Champions ranked higher than No. 40 in the nation, coming in at No. 78.

For the week, Wright led the Hoosiers by winning all four of his matches, followed by Martin with three wins and Peaper with two wins.

Wright has been a steady influence at the No. 3 spot in the Hoosiers’ lineup this season, playing in every tournament. The match play format at the Collegiate Match Play Championships brought out the best in the fiery Muncie, Ind. native.

“Winning four matches against a field like this is a great accomplishment for Chase,” Mayer said. “It was a gutty performance by him and he is a great match play player. He has a lot of heart out there playing and I wouldn’t want to have to play him.”

The Hoosiers will begin their run toward the Big Ten Championships on Easter weekend, when they defend their team title at the adidas Hoosier Invitational played at the IU Golf Course.

“We got to take care of business at the adidas Hoosier Invitational like we did last year and get some wins there,” Mayer said.