CARLSBAD — Auburn completed a dominant week at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa on Wednesday afternoon with another match-play crown.

Freshman Logan Reilly closed out Alex Papayoanou 1 up on the 18th hole, giving the top-seeded Tigers the clinching point in a 4-1 victory over No. 7 UCLA in the NCAA Division I Men’s Golf Championship match on La Costa’s North Course.

The putt touched off an orange-and-blue celebration around the 18th green, where Auburn players and coaches rushed toward Reilly as shouts of “War Eagle” cut through the coastal air.

The Tigers finished stroke play at 26 under to earn the No. 1 overall seed, beat Stanford 3.5-1.5 in the quarterfinals, swept defending national champion Oklahoma State 5-0 in the semifinals and then put away a Bruins team that had spent the previous 48 hours refusing to leave quietly.

“We coach for the national championship, I tell them that in August,” Auburn coach Nick Clinard said. “It’s a special win. Winning is hard. There’s so many great coaches, so many great players and programs. We’re going to enjoy this and we’ll get back to work pretty soon.”

The Tigers are only the second No. 1 seed to win the championship since the NCAA moved to match play in 2009, joining Oklahoma State in 2018. They also secured their second national title in three years, reinforcing their place as the sport’s current standard.

Clinard’s 2024 championship team leaned on a senior-heavy roster and a star freshman named Jackson Koivun. This version had no seniors, but it still had Koivun, the top-ranked amateur in the world, and enough balance throughout the lineup to make Auburn difficult to pressure for long.

Jake Albert delivered the first point Wednesday, beating UCLA’s Tyler Loree 5 and 3.

From there, the Tigers tightened their grip.

Koivun, fresh off winning the Fred Haskins Award for the second time, faced UCLA sophomore Baylor Larrabee in the day’s marquee match. It was the best player in college golf against the Bruins’ best player this week, with Larrabee coming off a 9-under finish in stroke play that tied him for sixth individually.

Koivun won 4 and 3, restoring the match-play authority that has defined much of his college career. He had lost for the first time in NCAA match play Tuesday morning against Stanford, then was 1 up on NCAA individual champion Preston Stout when Auburn clinched its semifinal sweep of Oklahoma State.

“Jackson Koivun could have gone to the PGA Tour last year, but he came back to Auburn for this reason right here,” Clinard said. “He came back to win a national championship, and came back for his teammates, for the Auburn family.”

On Wednesday, he again bent the board toward the Tigers, whether by delivering a point himself, applying pressure or forcing UCLA to search elsewhere for answers.

“It’s been so much fun this year with these guys,” Koivun said. “Especially with our freshmen, working their tails off. Obviously it showed this week. I’m just really happy for me and my team. War Eagle.”

Both Reilly and Papayoanou entered the final unbeaten in match play, and neither created much separation. The match stayed tied from the 11th hole until Reilly finally broke through on the 18th, ending UCLA’s comeback hopes and Auburn’s title wait at the same time.

Under NCAA match play rules, once a team reaches the clinching third point, the remaining matches are halted and recorded at their current scores. UCLA’s Josh Kim was 3 up on Josiah Gilbert through 15 holes when play ended, while Auburn junior Cayden Pope was 4 up on Kyle An through 14.

The Bruins barely reached match play, surviving a dramatic four-team playoff against Tennessee, North Carolina and Stanford to claim the No. 7 seed. Once in the bracket, they upset No. 2 Texas in the quarterfinals and beat No. 6 Arizona in the semifinals, advancing beyond the quarterfinal stage for the first time since the NCAA adopted the match-play format.

But the breakthrough run ended one step short of UCLA’s third national title and first since 2008.