NCAA Central: New Mexico takes top spot

New Mexico, the top seed in the Columbus Regional, played like the best team on a day when it mattered the most. New Mexico improved each day, not only in total score, but in position on the leaderboard to win the regional by two shots over Auburn. Led by senior James Erkenbeck’s 3-under 68, New Mexico won for the fifth time this year. Erkenbeck, who is ranked No. 17 in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings, was the only player in the 75-player field to finish the 54 holes under par. Erkenbeck’s 3-under 210 was better than a trio of players – Auburn’s Dominic Bozzelli, Virginia’s Denny McCarthy and South Carolina’s Matthew NeSmith, who all finished at 1-over 214. “Everything you can hope for they did it today,” New Mexico head coach Glen Millican said. The fifth-ranked Lobos' worst individual score in the final round was a 2-over 73 on the demanding Ohio State University Scarlet Golf Course layout. The average score in the final round was 74.81. “When we have had our great tournaments this year we have had all five guys in the mix and we did that today. It’s a hard to do that and especially on that golf course,” Millican said.