WHEELING, W.Va. — The IUP men's golf program took care of business on Saturday, holding off a big group of teams looking to climb up the standings and securing fourth overall. The finish hands IUP a bid to the 2024 NCAA DII National Championships, marking the second consecutive nationals appearance for the program.
 
Qualifying for its 28th straight NCAA regional, the Hawks picked up their 34th overall section to nationals in program history. IUP earned a nationals bid for an impressive 13th time since 1998.
 
Gannon (864) played a stellar tournament, winning the NCAA Atlantic/East Regional by 23 shots. Charleston (W.Va.) (887), St. Thomas Aquinas (889), IUP (892) and Post (905) joined the Golden Knights as the advancing teams.
 
Matin Elisa (Davis & Elkins) and Filip Wetterqvist (Adelphi) earned a nationals bid as the top two individuals on a non-advancing team.
 
The competitors were pulled off the course twice on Saturday because of stormy weather. The delays did not deter IUP's focus, carding the team's best round of the tournament with a 291. 
 
The 291 was the third lowest round of the field on Saturday. Guillermo Salazar finished tied for sixth individually (218), firing an even-par 71 on Saturday. Salazar posted a pair of birdies on the front nine, calmly sinking pars on the entire back nine for a strong final round.
 
Alex Swinnerton recorded his best round of the tournament with a one-over 72. Finishing tied for 19th (223), Swinnerton closed his round with birdies on three of the final four holes.
 
Cameron Gerue closed a strong tournament tied for 21st (224). His 74 on Saturday matched the final round output of veteran Shaun Fedor (T31; 228). Aidan LeBlanc rounded out the IUP lineup in 75th.
 
Team Leaderboard (top five teams advance)
1. Gannon — 294, 282, 288 (864; +12)
2. Charleston (W.Va.) — 296, 290, 301 (887; +35)
3. St. Thomas Aquinas — 300, 300, 289 (889; +37)
4. IUP — 303, 298, 291 (892; +40)
5. Post — 30, 294, 303 (905; +53)
 
Individual Leaderboard
1. Shaunak Rama (Gannon) — 71, 70, 70 (211; -2)
T2. Matin Eisa (Davis & Elkins) — 70, 71, 72 (213; E)
T2. Michael Wareham (Gannon) — 69, 68, 76 (213; E)
T4. Djamal Darrason (St. Thomas Aquinas) — 71, 75, 71 (217; +4)
T4. Filip Wetterqvist (Adelphi) — 73, 70, 74 (217; +4)
 
IUP Scores (Speidel Jones Course – Par 71)
T6. Guillermo Salazar — 78, 69, 71 (218)
T19. Alex Swinnerton — 76, 75, 72 (223)
T21. Cameron Gerue — 71, 79, 74 (224)
T31. Shaun Fedor — 79, 75, 75 (228)
75. Aidan LeBlanc — 78, 85, 81 (244)
 
Up Next
IUP begins the 2024 NCAA DII National Championships on Tuesday, May 21 at Orange County National in Florida.
 
Follow
For coverage of the IUP men's golf program, follow the Crimson Hawks on X (Twitter) (@IUPgolf), Instagram (@IUPmgolf) and online at IUPathletics.com.
 

---