LEAVING A LEGACY! Little Rock Wins 2022 Sun Belt Championship

EL DORADO, Ark.  – Little Rock capped a record-setting regular season with its third Sun Belt Conference Championship, besting Georgia Southern 3-1-1 in the match play championship Wednesday at Mystic Creek Golf Club. It gives Little Rock its third Sun Belt title in program history, joining the 2000 and 2001 teams, as the Trojans clinch the league title in their final season as a Sun Belt member.
 
Little Rock qualified for the match play championship after tying for the team title after the 54-hole stroke play event Sunday through Tuesday. The Trojans earned the number two seed, drawing UT Arlington in the semifinals.
 
Thanks to convincing wins from Magnus Lomholt, Jansen Smith and Marcel Rauch in the semifinal round, Little Rock pulled away over the back nine holes to defeat UT Arlington 3-2 to secure its second-straight appearance in the match play finals.
 
Lomholt and Smith both registered 4&3 victories, pulling away over the back nine. Lomholt was 3-up after five holes before dropping 18 and one to sit 1-up. But he would win holes two, four and five to cruise to the victory.
 
Smith fell behind early dropping, hole 10, but rallied to win holes 13, 14, 16, 17 and 18 to sit 4-up at the turn. Smith then won hole two to go 5-up, settling in to the four-hole victory.
 
Rauch's play turned into the key match of the semifinals, battling through the first nine holes and sitting even at the turn. But Rauch responded to win holes one, three and four to go 3-up, then secured the win by taking hole seven to clinch the match for the Trojans.
 
Anton Albers fell 4&2 while Nico Horder dropped a 3&5 decision.
 
The afternoon round was a rematch of last year's match play event, won 3-1-1 by Georgia Southern. Little Rock raced out to a fast start in four of the five head-to-head contests, holding a 4-1-0 lead at the turn.
 
Rauch was the first Trojan to notch a victory, taking a 3&2 decision after building a 4-up lead after five holes to start the championship round. Rauch never fell below a two-hole lead, winning the 13th and 14th to return to 4-up and secure the win.
 
Horder bounced back from a disappointing semifinal appearance to secure a much-needed win for Little Rock, winning 4&3 to put the Trojans up 2-0. Horder had another fast start, holding a 4-up lead through seven holes and again was never seriously threatened, never dropping below a two-hole advantage. He would win the 14th and 15th to move to 4-up and secure the win.
 
The two key matches of the afternoon round featured Smith and Lomholt, each of whom battled their Georgia Southern opponent for the duration. Smith led by as many as two after six, but found himself 1-down after hole 15. Lomholt held a 2-up lead on a pair of occasions, the second of which came after hole nine, but found himself tied after 15, with the match tied at 2-2-1.
 
In the 2021 match play event the 16th and 17th holes proved crucial for Little Rock as the Trojans dropped key decisions, resulting in allowing the Eagles to clinch the title. This time around, those two holed proved key for Little Rock, beginning with a birdie from Smith on 16 to pull even, followed by Lomholt winning the hole to go 1-up and give the Trojans the 3-1-1 advantate.
 
17 would then be the swing hole as a long birdie putt from Smith gave him the hole, turning a 1-down deficit into a 1-up advantage in the space of two holes. With a chance to clinch the title on 17, Lomholt dropped the hole to pull even, making the score 3-1-1 in favor of Little Rock.
 
That set the stage for Smith, who only needed to half the hole to secure the win. After a stellar tee shot and a great approach, Smith put his third shot on the par-five 18th less than 10 feet from the hole, and Georgia Southern's birdie attempt went short, securing the Trojans' third conference title.
 
Little Rock will now prepare for the postseason as they are assured a berth in the NCAA Regionals for the second-straight year, earning the automatic berth. The Sun Belt's highest-ranked team will learn its regional destination on Wednesday, May 4, as Little Rock will begin its quest to make a return trip to the NCAA Championships in Scottsdale, Arizona.
 
2022 Sun Belt Match Play Results
 
 Semifinals – Little Rock wins, 3-2
Magnus Lomholt (LR) def. Daniel Cronje (UTA), 4&3
Jansen Smith (LR) def. Kyle Cox (UTA), 4&3
Marcel Rauch (LR) def. Caleb Hicks (UTA), 3&2
Daniel Steinarsson (UTA) def. Anton Albers (LR), 4&2
Paul Gonzalez (UTA) def. Nico Horder (LR), 3&5
 
Finals – Little Rock wins, 3-1-1
Marcel Rauch (LR) def. Wlson Andress (GASO), 3&2
Nico Horder (LR) def. Colin Bowles (GASO), 4&3
Jansen Smith def. Hogan Ingram (GASO), 1-up
Magnus Lomholt (LR) and Mason Willliams (GASO) tied
Ben Carr (GASO) def. Anton Albers (LR) 5&4
 
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