The Longhorns were able to salvage at least one match victory Tuesday, after defeating Baylor 4-1 in the final round of the Callaway Collegiate Match Play Championship.
After a tough first two days, Texas registered a decisive win over the Bears to finish in 15th place. This is the lowest the Longhorns have finished in a tournament since spring competition began.
Senior Bobby Hudson and sophomore Johnathan Schnitzer both lead their individual matchups from the start, and were able to get the Longhorns rolling in the right direction. Hudson put away Baylor’s Jerry Ruiz with three holes to go after taking a four-hole lead. Schnitzer also led early and often, winning by six holes over the Bears’ Matthew Seligmann.
Texas junior Dylan Frittelli and sophomore Cody Gribble also got the better of their Baylor counterparts, although Gribble had to come back from an early deficit. Sophomore Julio Vegas trailed much of his matchup with Baylor senior Cody Paladino, and was not able to defeat his elder opponent. It was another difficult outing for the Longhorns, who won only 11 out of their 25 individual matchups.
Texas’ first-round opponent, Duke, proved to be much better than the 10-seed they received in the tournament. The Blue Devils finished off Illinois in the final round to claim first place. Other notable finishes were Texas Tech at fourth, Texas A&M at sixth and UCLA at seventh.
The Longhorns will host the Morris Williams Intercollegiate tournament on April 5-6 at The University of Texas Golf Club.