Golf Teams Ready; LSC Farewell

Congrats to the UCO men’s and women’s golf teams, who both earned invites to the NCAA Division II post-season party that begins with regional competition on May 1.

The 13th-ranked women go to Amarillo, Texas for the West Regional May 1-3, while the top-rated men – yes, that’s No. 1 in the nation – travel to Georgetown, Ky. For the South Central/Central Regional May 2-4.

Nine teams make up the women’s field, with every squad ranked in the top 19 nationally. Three of those nine, along with three individuals, qualify for the national tournament.

Michael Bond’s squad has enjoyed a good year, having placed in the top six in all 10 tournaments in 2010-11. The Bronchos have six top four finishes, winning their own UCO/Mahogany Classic last fall at Lincoln Park in Oklahoma City.

Freshman Chaney Uhles has the team’s best scoring average at 77.2, while juniors Emily Leahey (77.9) and Erica Bensch (77.9) have also been consistent performers. Rookie Taylor Neidy (79.0) and junior Mychael McWhorter (81.5) round out the team that will be gunning to earn UCO’s first-ever national tournament berth.

Twenty teams comprise the men’s super regional, with the top five and two individuals advancing on to the national championships.

Dax Johnston and the Bronchos have put together simply an amazing year, having won a school-record eight tournaments in 11 tries. UCO finished runner-up in two other tournaments with its worst finish, a fifth at the St. Edward’s Invitational in early March, the direct result of an injury that forced the team to play a man short.

This veteran, close-knit unit obviously has the ability to be a prime national championship contender. They’re not ranked No. 1 in the country for nothing, taking over that top spot in the latest coaches poll after capturing the Lone Star Conference title May 20 in San Antonio.

Senior stud Colby Shrum leads the way, carrying a salty 70.7 scoring average with a school-record five individual championships to his credit. Sophomore Josh Creel has a 71.3 average and nine top-10 finishes, including two titles.

Juniors Andrew Green (72.0) and Baer Aneshansley (73.9) and sophomore Chris Muriana (75.0) complete the powerhouse squad that has its sights set high for the month of May.


And on another note . . . the Lone Star Conference Track and Field Championships in Stephenville, Texas on May 6-8 will mark the end of an era for the Central Oklahoma athletic department.

It will be the final LSC event the Bronchos will ever compete in as the school starts its transition to the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association, a process that will have UCO competing as NCAA Division II independents next year before joining the MIAA for the 2012-13 academic year.

It will be sad to leave a league I’ve been around since we joined back in the late 1980s and I’ll certainly miss all the people in the conference office and from the LSC affiliated teams whom I’ve come to know over the years.

But it will also mean the start of some new and exciting rivalries with schools various UCO teams have met off-and-on over the years. The Bronchos have gone against Northwest Missouri, Pittsburg State, Central Missouri, Washburn, Emporia State and other MIAA teams in several sports over the years and there’s no question our new league ranks among of the best in Division II.

So, after next week, it will be farewell to the LSC. It was good to know you.