PANAMA CITY, Fla. — Stanford men’s golf earned its first Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Championship Match Play win on Sunday, dispatching No. 27 Duke, 3-1, before battling No. 24 Florida State into the night as the Cardinal competed in the Semifinal match that was halted due to darkness. Stanford heads into the final few holes of the semifinal match with Edan Cui and Dean Greyserman looking to secure the final two points for the Cardinal at 7:30 a.m. CT with the Cardinal trailing 2-1.
Against Duke, Stanford rode three match wins en route to a decisive 3-1 win over the Blue Devils to secure its first-ever ACC Men’s Golf Championship match play victory and advance for the first time to the ACC match play semifinals. Edan Cui led the Cardinal in match one, taking a 1Up lead on hole five after falling by one early, and never looking back on his way to a 4&2 win. Cui secured five birdies on the day including the match-clincher on hole 16 while winning six holes during the day.
In match two, Nathan Wang battled hard against Duke’s Ethan Evas but could not complete a comeback as he fell 4&3. Wang nabbed one birdie through the round and won two holes. In match three, Jay Leng grabbed the lead on hole eight and never wavered, earning a 2&1 win over Oliver Mukherjee to give Stanford its second point of the match. Leng secured four birdies including one to clinch the 2&1 win on hole 17 as the sophomore won four holes during the match. Dean Greyserman secured Stanford’s 3-1 win with a decisive 5&4 win over Bryan Kim. Greyserman secured four birdies on Sunday’s round, winning six holes to propel Stanford into the semifinal.
Ethan Gao also golfed well, ending the quarterfinals 1Up over Daniel Choi in a match that went unfinished through 16. Gao battled back from three separate one-hole deficits before grabbing a the 1Up finish with his final of five birdies on the day.
In its first semifinal ACC semifinal bout, Stanford shot well despite an early delay due to inclement weather in the area. Following a two-hour delay due to lightning, the Cardinal turned in solid performances to go into the final few holes of the semifinal against No. 24 Florida State with a chance to advance to the match play final.
Ethan Gao secured the lone point for the Cardinal through three completed matches on Sunday, turning in a 1Up win with a birdie on the final hole to snatch the point for Stanford. Gao never trailed in the match, winning five holes and grabbing three birdies in a dominant showing.
However, FSU grabbed the final two points of the day, turning in wins in matches two and three. Jay Leng hung tight with FSU’s Tyler Weaver, earning three birdies before falling 4&3. Nathan Wang also had a strong day before a late comeback into the night by FSU’s Patrick McCann forced the fall, 3&1. Wang won four holes during his match while posting five birdies.
Edan Cui and Dean Greyserman head into the Monday’s semifinal finale holding the final two points for Stanford. Cui has won six holes having led 1Up through six while Greysermanhas led since hole seven, winning six holes including taking hole three with a birdie on the par-five. Cui slots tied with FSU’s Jack Bigham heading into the 17th hole while Greyserman leads 2Up over FSU’s Carson Brewer through 15.
Stanford is back in action to complete the semifinal match play bout against the Seminoles at 7:30 a.m. CT. The ACC Match Play Final will follow the conclusion of the semifinal matchups.
No. 18 Stanford def. No. 27 Duke, 3-1
Match 1: Edan Cui (STAN) def. William Love (DUKE), 4&2
Match 2: Ethan Evans (DUKE) def. Nathan Wang (STAN), 4&3
Match 3: Jay Leng (STAN) def. Oliver Mukherjee (DUKE), 2&1
Match 4: Ethan Gao (STAN) v. Daniel Choi (DUKE), 1Up thru 16
Match 5: Dean Greyserman (STAN) def. Bryan Kim (DUKE), 5&4
No. 18 Stanford vs. No. 24 Florida State, 1-2
Match 1: Ethan Gao (STAN) def. Jack Whaley (FSU), 1Up
Match 2: Tyler Weaver (FSU) def. Jay Leng (STAN), 4&3
Match 3: Patrick McCann (FSU) def. Nathan Wang (STAN), 3&1
Match 4: Edan Cui (STAN) v. Jack Bigham (FSU), T thru 16
Match 5: Dean Greyserman (STAN) v. Cardon Brewer (FSU), 2Up thru 15