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Michael Davan

MEN'S GOLF TEAM CAPTURES SUMMIT LEAGUE TITLE; DAVAN EARNS CHAMPIONSHIP MVP HONORS

Jaguars earn third NCAA trip with victory

4/24/2012 5:36:00 PM

Final Results (.pdf) I Photo Gallery

PRIMM, Nev. - Head coach John Andrews claims he had multiple heart attacks. Senior Michael Davan 'wanted to throw up' as he walked up the 18th fairway. However, through it all, the Jaguars were able to hoist hardware for the seventh time this season and capture the program's first Summit League title since 2006.

The IUPUI men's golf team claimed the 2012 Summit League Men's Golf Championship title on Tuesday (Apr. 24), outlasting Southern Utah in a one-hole playoff to earn the program's third-ever NCAA Tournament berth. Davan claimed Championship MVP honors after a tournament and school record 205 (64-71-70), bettering teammate Ben Engle by two strokes.

Both Davan and sophomore Rob van de Vin made par on the par-4 18th in the one-hole playoff while all five Thunderbirds made bogey. Both Davan and Engle earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team while head coach John Andrews was named Summit League Coach of the Year.

"You should've seen some of the shots Davan and Engle hit on the last couple holes. I thought we were toast," Andrews said. "These guys were as clutch as clutch can be. It was a struggle, but we battled."

IUPUI exploded out to a huge lead after an opening round 265 and still held a 10-shot advantage over the field entering Tuesday's final round. However, the lead slowly went away as Oral Roberts, IPFW and Southern Utah all made runs.

The typically steady senior trio of Davan, Engle and Michael Powell were unable to seal the deal in regulation, forcing a decisive 55th hole.

"Nobody ever made a birdie run," Andrews said. "Everytime I checked scores on the computer, I was expecting to see someone had gone on a run and it'd be over. It just never happened though."

"Honestly, I didn't know anything," Davan said of the team scores heading into his final hole. "I could tell it was close. It was the worst feeling of my life walking down the fairway (of 18). I wanted to throw up. I didn't know if I was playing my last ever hole of college golf or what the deal was."

Even after Davan chipped in to make birdie to end his tournament at 205, he and his teammates knew Engle would likely have to make par or better to win the tournament. It didn't happen. The veteran went out of bounds off the tee, but scrambled to make bogey and force a 10-man playoff on that same No. 18.

"If you give us any kind of chance, we're usually going to come out on top," Davan said.

The first group of five resulted in an SUU par and bogey, a pair of IUPUI bogeys and van de Vin's par. With the second group coming approaching the green, Davan felt confident after leaving himself in good position.

"Coach told me they hadn't made anything but bogeys and then I saw where they were and I felt really good about it. I joked with Coach that he needed to smile," Davan said.

After some long Southern Utah missed putts, Davan dropped in a short three-footer to seal the win.

"It was awesome," Davan said. "It's what we wanted and what we've worked so hard for."

For Davan, the individual title was a little bittersweet, knowing he overtook teammate and good friend Engle to win it.

"When (Engle) got hot the first day, I knew it was going to be a battle because of how good of a player he is," Davan said. "We knew if we were both up on top of the leaderboard, there was a good chance we would win it.

"There was some trash talk going on last night though."

Engle was runner-up at 207 (62-70-75) and Powell, last year's Championship MVP, came in at 218 (69-76-73). van de Vin and Jose Pablo Segurola finished at 219 and 221, respectively, with both shooting final round 75's. After the school record 265 on Monday, IUPUI was the huntee as opposed to the typical role of hunter.

"I can't believe after a 265, we had to play the 54th hole the way we did to force a playoff," Andrews said.

The team will return to Indianapolis and return to practice this week in preparation for the May 17-19 NCAA Regional play at one of six regional sites.

Team Standings
**1. IUPUI - 265-291-293=849 (-3)
2. Southern Utah - 278-288-283=849 (-3)
3. Oral Roberts - 285-287-279=851 (-1)
4. IPFW - 279-287-290=856 (+4)
5. North Dakota State - 291-288-282=861 (+9)
6. Western Illinois - 285-292-288=865 (+13)
7. UMKC - 293-298-290=881 (+29)
8. South Dakota State - 291-305-286=882 (+30)
9. Oakland - 296-292-295=883 (+31)
10. South Dakota - 302-305-308=915 (+63)
      **won in a 1-hole playoff

Individual Standings
1. Michael Davan - 64-71-70=205 (-8)
2. Ben Engle - 62-70-75=207 (-6)
t-22. Michael Powell - 69-76-73=218 (+5)
t-24. Rob van de Vin - 70-74-75=219 (+6)
t-31. Jose Pablo Segurola - 70-76-75=221 (+8)
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