CARLSBAD, Calif. \u2013 For the second time in three years, the Auburn Tigers are national champions.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The top-ranked Tigers never trailed In Wednesday\u2019s NCAA Championship final, distancing themselves on the back nine of the Omni LaCosta North Course to defeat No. 23 UCLA 4-1.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt brings tears to my eyes. I love them so much and I love Auburn and our program. I\u2019m very grateful,\u201d Auburn coach Nick Clinard<\/a> said. \u201cOur guys just kept doing what they\u2019re doing. We played some really good golf this week right from the start in the first round. It was windier today and probably the windiest day we\u2019ve had since we\u2019ve been here. I knew that we were good ball-strikers.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI felt pretty comfortable going into the round, but I know it\u2019s match play and anything can happen. I really believed in my guys. Even though I wasn\u2019t calm, I tried to stay calm so they could see that.\u201d<\/p>\n In the leadoff match, freshman Logan Reilly<\/a> won the first hole and never trailed against UCLA\u2019s Alex Papayoanou, clinching the match for Auburn with a par on No. 18.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt means the world and you can\u2019t dream of anything better, especially with the feeling of all the guys and the Auburn family behind you and supporting you,\u201d said Reilly, who went 3-0 in match play over the past two days. \u201cIt\u2019s unlike anything that I\u2019ve ever done before. This is the craziest feeling, and I can\u2019t wait to bring home the trophy to the Plains.\u201d<\/p>\n Two years after earning the program\u2019s first national title by beating Florida State for the 2024 NCAA Championship at the same venue, Auburn set the tone early when SEC freshman of the year Jake Albert<\/a> won the first two holes against UCLA\u2019s Tyler Loree in match No. 2.<\/p>\n Albert never trailed, winning back-to-back holes on 9 and 10 to turn a one-shot lead into a three-shot runaway, a lead he further extended on the back nine before earning Auburn\u2019s first point with a 5 & 3 win. \u00a0<\/p>\n In the third match, two-time Hogan and Haskins award winner Jackson Koivun<\/a>, the world\u2019s No. 1 amateur, fell behind on hole No.2 but squared the match two holes later with a birdie on No. 4, taking the lead for good with another birdie on the par-5 sixth hole.<\/p>\n Similar to Albert\u2019s match, Koivun pulled away from UCLA\u2019s Baylor Larrabee by winning consecutive holes 9 and 10 to take a commanding 3-up lead. Larrabee birdied 12 but Koivun answered with a par on 14 to take the hole before clinching his match and Auburn\u2019s second point with a birdie putt on 15 to win 4&3, pumping his fist after capping one of the most remarkable seasons in NCAA golf history.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI stayed really consistent and kept my foot down on the pedal,\u201d Koivun said. \u201cBaylor is a great player, and I just happened to come out victorious. This was a new group of guys. We faced some adversity early on in the season. To see us battle back after that and get to this point is really a cool thing.\u201d<\/p>\n Playing in the anchor position, junior Cayden Pope<\/a> never trailed in his match against UCLA\u2019s Kyle An, twice taking 1-up leads on the front nine before the Bruin squared the match with an eagle on No. 6.\u00a0<\/p>\n Undaunted, Pope birdied the next two holes to give the Tigers sizable leads in three matches, narrowing any potential path to victory UCLA might have envisioned.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cAuburn continued to play awesome, and I thought our guys were solid,\u201d UCLA coach Armen Kirakossian said. \u201cWe were keeping some matches close, but eventually Auburn got on a little bit of a run on 7, 8 and 11, where they were hitting really good shots and really difficult pins.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThey made birdies on holes that, frankly, people all week were not making birdies on. You just can\u2019t do much about that. They played amazing today. They are a great team, and on top of that, they played awesome today.\u201d<\/p>\n Playing on a course less than a two-hour drive south from their campus, UCLA made a late push, winning back-nine holes in quick succession in matches 3, 4 and 5.<\/p>\n Just as quickly, Auburn regained momentum when Pope hit his approach shot on No. 11 to within a foot of the hole to reclaim a 2-up lead over An. \u00a0The junior from Lexington, Kentucky, had more magic to come, winning three straight holes, culminating the hot streak with a 25-foot birdie putt on No. 13 to win 4-up. \u00a0<\/p>\n In match No. 4 junior Josiah Gilbert<\/a> twice trailed on the front nine before taking the lead with a birdie on the par-5 10th hole before UCLA\u2019s Josh Kim reclaimed the advantage by winning the next four holes to claim the Bruins\u2019 only point with a 3-up win.<\/p>\n Auburn men\u2019s golf will celebrate its second NCAA title in customary fashion, with a ceremony Friday at 2:30 p.m. CT at Toomer\u2019s Corner.\u00a0<\/p>\n After finishing first in the stroke play portion of the NCAA Championship for the first time in program history, Auburn advanced to the championship match by beating No. 15 Stanford 3-1-1 in the quarterfinals and cruising past defending national champion No. 5 Oklahoma State 5-0 in the semifinals on Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re young and we don\u2019t have any seniors on the roster,\u201d Clinard said. \u201cI thought the connectivity, the heart, the love and care for each other was really special.\u201d<\/p>\n Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X:\u00a0@jeff_shearer<\/a><\/p>\n