ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – It was nearly déjà vu all over again for the Vanderbilt men’s golf team, as the No. 3-seeded Commodores collected their second extra-hole win of the day with a 3-1-1 victory over No. 7-seed Texas A&M in the semifinals of 2024 SEC Men’s Golf Championship to advance to Sunday’s conference title match.
Following almost a similar script as its 3-2 win in the quarterfinals over No. 6-seed Florida earlier in the day, the Commodores needed an extra hole to score the victory and advance to Sunday’s championship match. It was junior Jackson Van Paris who answered the call for Vandy in the semifinals. The Pinehurst, North Carolina, native sank a 15-foot putt on Hole 20 of his match with TAMU’s Jamie Montojo to clinch the semifinal victory for the Dores. Vanderbilt moves on to the title match at the 2024 SEC Men’s Golf Championship, where the Commodores will take on No. 1-seed Auburn.
“What a day and what a finish,” said Vanderbilt men’s golf head coach Scott Limbaugh. “Once again, another great opponent pushed us to the limit and our guys responded. That’s all you can ask for. Everything you do in building a program is for moments like that. I’m super proud to see our guys finish and for Gordon and Cole to bounce back. I’m also proud of Jackson for knocking in that clutch putt and seeing him get a couple of wins today. It’s crazy how the momentum of these matches changes, and I feel excited that we came out on top. We play another great team tomorrow for an SEC Championship and we have got to be prepared.”
Vanderbilt advances to the title match at the SEC Championship for the fourth-consecutive season. It will be Vandy’s fifth overall appearance in the conference championship match, as the Dores also earned a spot in the title match in 2017 for the first time in program history.
Senior Cole Sherwood gave the Commodores their first point of the semifinals, as he posted a 4 & 3 victory over Texas A&M’s Phichaksn Maichon. With the match tied through seven holes, Sherwood claimed four of the next five holes to go 3-up and put the match out of reach.
The Aggies pulled even with the Dores at 1-1-0 after Michael Heidelbaugh posted a 1-up win over graduate student Matthew Riedel. Junior Gordon Sargent collected the 1-up win over Daniel Rodrigues to give Vandy the lead back at 2-1-0, which set up Van Paris for the win on his 20th hole of the match.
Vanderbilt will be seeking to win its fourth-ever SEC Men’s Golf Championship this Sunday against No. 1-seeded Auburn. The Commodores have claimed the SEC Championship in 2017, 2021, and 2022.
The title match at the 2024 SEC Men’s Golf Championship gets underway Sunday at 7 a.m. CT on SEC Network. Pairings can be found by clicking the link here, while GolfStat.com will provide live results.
“We have to get some rest and be ready for tomorrow,” said Limbaugh. “We need our fans here to be loud and excited. We have an opportunity to play in the SEC Championship against a great opponent and there will be nowhere to hide. I’m excited to see our guys perform tomorrow.”
For more information on the Vanderbilt men’s golf team, follow @VandyMGOLF on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter/X.
