Stanford grabs NCAA golf championship
Isaiah Salinda, Brandon Wu and Henry Shimp won their matches Wednesday, propelling Stanford to the NCAA golf championship with a 3-2, match-play victory over Texas.
The Cardinal earned their ninth national title in men’s golf, their second under head coach Conrad Ray and their first since 2007.
Salinda, a senior from South San Francisco, posted a 4-and-3 victory over Cole Hammer, the Longhorns’ acclaimed freshman. Wu beat Pierceson Coody by the same margin, and Shimp cemented the title with a 2and-1 win over Texas’ Spencer Soosman.
Daniel Snyder and Daulet Tuleubayev, who closed out Stanford’s victories in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, on Tuesday, lost their matches Wednesday.
The Cardinal completed their fifth consecutive team victory, including the Pac-12 championship and NCAA regional, before one final triumph at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark.
“I think we got the momentum going early in the spring, and we’ve just been riding the wave,” Ray said on Golf Channel. “We knew we had our hands full at this course, but our guys have been playing tough courses well all spring.
“It’s all about getting the right recipe. We’ve had some great senior leadership, and we got a bunch of energy from our young guys.”
One of those senior leaders was Salinda, a Serra alum. He reached the semifinals of the U.S. Amateur at Pebble Beach in August, another example of his affinity for match play.
“It’s a format I’ve come to embrace,” Salinda said. “I think it’s the most exciting type of golf you can find. When the pressure’s on, it forces you to focus and hit the shots you need to, and play for your team.”
Salinda and Wu, another senior, also won their matches in Stanford’s quarterfinal victory over Wake Forest (3-2) and its semifinal win over Vanderbilt (also 3-2).