RENO, Nev. – After back-to-back NCAA Regionals appearances, the Nevada men's golf team looks to keep that momentum rolling into a new season.
The Wolf Pack had arguably one of its best overall seasons in program history in 2018-19, winning a program-record three tournaments and capping the year off with its 13
th NCAA Regionals appearance. Nevada also saw two of its student-athletes capture three individual tournament titles and the team set a new single season scoring record, averaging 287.44 strokes per round.
Entering the 2019-20 season, the 10
th under head coach
Jacob Wilner, the Wolf Pack will have to replace some of its firepower after losing
Stephen Osborne and
Joey Vrzich in the offseason. Osborne nearly qualified for the national championship on an individual level last season, falling in a sudden death playoff at regionals, while Vrzich won two individual titles last fall.
Nevada has become one of the top programs in the Mountain West though in the last few years and added strong pieces to the roster in the offseason. Three newcomers will join the team this year, two transfers and one freshman.
Cam Kellett, a transfer from Division II Young Harris College, was named the Peach Belt Conference Freshman of the Year in 2018-19 and ranked 12
th in the nation after the fall season. Wilner also added Texas A&M transfer
Peyton Callens, who won the 2019 Ontario Men's Match Play Championship, and freshman
Connor Motherway, a local product who is a two-time Northern Nevada High School Player of the Year.
Those newcomers, mixed with four returners who have a plethora of collegiate golf experience like
Sam Meek,
Sam Harned,
Tony Gil, and
Trey Davis, should deepen the Wolf Pack lineup.
Mitch Abbott, who redshirted in his true freshman season, will also be an option for Wilner to call on.
The Wolf Pack has a loaded schedule this year, giving the team a ton of tournament experience to lead them into another regionals appearance. All in all, Nevada will compete in 12 regular season events and then the Mountain West Championship May 1-3 before postseason play begins. One of the highlights of the 2019-20 schedule is a dual match against Oregon State set for Monday, Sept. 23 at Montreux Country Club in Reno. It will be the Pack's first home event since the 2011 Wolf Pack Classic.
Nevada kicks off the 2019-20 campaign this Sunday, Sept. 8 at the three-day Badger Invite at the University Course in Madison, Wis.
