Division I Men's Golf | National Tournament Recap
NEWTON, Kan. – Indian Hills and Iowa Western traveled to Kansas this past week to compete at the NJCAA Men's Golf Division I National Championship held at Sand Creek Station. Indian Hills finished strong, placing third overall, while Iowa Western tied for 12th, landing in the top half of the leaderboard.
Indian Hills started the tournament well with a team score of -1, putting them in the top five early on. Charlie Preston led the way for the Warriors, finishing with a +2 overall score—a particularly impressive feat considering he began day two at +7. Preston's back half of the tournament was exceptional, finishing -4 under par on day three and -1 on day four.
Close behind Preston was teammate Emilio Arellano, who ended the tournament at +3. Arellano stood out during the first three days by hitting nine birdies. The next two Warriors contributing to the team score were Karl Knauer, who placed 17th with a +5 after a hot start, and Nathan Pochoulon, who finished 34th with a +12 out of a field of 138 golfers.
Iowa Western improved on last season's performance, finishing 12th, six spots better than the previous year. Much of their success was credited to Ethan Main, who placed 17th with a +5 and earned an All-American nod. Main was consistent over the four rounds, opening with a -3 and four birdies on day one, followed by impressive eagle rounds on days two and three (+3 and +2), and wrapping up with a steady +3 to climb three places on the final day.
Other top performers for the Reivers included Ryan Lingelbach, who placed 34th with a +12, though his round four +10 was challenging, and Bowdie Fox, who finished 80th at +22 with consistent rounds of +6, +7, +4, and +5.
Midland (Texas) claimed the team championship with a total score of +6, while Charlie Box from Hutchinson (Kan.) took home the individual crown, finishing 5-under par.
Second Team All-American
10. Charlie Preston, Indian Hills
T11. Emilio Arellano, Indian Hills
Honorable Mention All-American
T17. Carl Knauer, Indian Hills
T17. Ethan Main, Iowa Western