The University of Nevada, Las Vegas men’s golf team surged into the lead on May 4 after setting a program single-round record with an 18-under-par score of 270 during the second round of the Mountain West Championship. The event is being held at the OMNI Tucson National Resort’s Catalina Course.
This achievement surpasses UNLV’s previous best single-round score in a league championship, which was a 271 recorded in both the 2009 and 2010 Mountain West Championships. The strong performance on day two moved UNLV up four spots on the leaderboard, giving them a one-shot lead over Grand Canyon University with a combined score of 27-under-par for two rounds.
All five players from UNLV posted par-or-better scores in this round. Junior Zach Little and senior Brett Sawaia each shot six-under-par rounds of 66, with Little going bogey-free for his season-low and Sawaia achieving his career-best round. Senior Wyatt Plattner contributed a four-under-par round of 68, junior Mason Snyder finished at two-under-par (70), and senior Trevor Lewis carded an even-par round after opening with a five-under first round.
In total, UNLV players made 25 birdies during Monday’s play. Each player birdied the par-5 second hole, while Little and Plattner led with six birdies each. Sawaia also scored an eagle on hole fifteen. Four Rebels are currently ranked within the top fifteen individually: Little is tied for fourth place at nine under par; Sawaia is tied for eighth at six under; Lewis and Plattner are tied for thirteenth at five under; Snyder sits tied for thirty-fifth.
“The team played a good round of golf today. Individually, all five guys had a goal of going out and putting together a good, solid under-par score. That’s what they did, so it was a good day. We got off to a good start, which really helps out here. Getting off to a better start today put us in position for a good round. There are plenty of birdie holes out here, but you’ve got to be careful on some holes and be smart in a few spots. As a team (everyone) chipped in,” said UNLV Head Coach Jean-Paul Hebert.
UNLV will begin Tuesday’s final round leading by one stroke as they aim to secure victory in this year’s conference championship.
