Herron Leads Lobos to Fourth Place Finish at ASU Thunderbird Collegiate

PHOENIX –– The New Mexico men’s golf team concluded its regular season schedule Saturday with the final round of the ASU Thunderbird Collegiate at Papago Golf Course. The Lobos shot 5-under during the third round to climb up one spot for a fourth-place finish at 22-under.

Host Arizona State, ranked No. 5 nationally, won the title at 39-under. No. 33 Colorado was the runner up at 27-under, followed by No. 14 Utah (23-under), the No. 49 Lobos (22-under) and Grand Canyon (20-under) in the top five.

Carson Herron tied for the individual title at 12-under for the week, but finished runner-up after losing to Arizona State’s Pongsapak Laopakdee on the first playoff hole. It marked the second time this season Herron finished runner-up in a playoff, having been edged by teammate Alvaro Portillo for the individual title at the William H. Tucker Intercollegiate in September at the UNM Championship Course. He shot a final-round 4-under 67 to finish with at 12-under, tying his career low total and tying for the sixth lowest 54-hole score in UNM history.

Mesa Falleur had his team-best fourth top-10 of the season, finishing T-9th at 7-under after a 1-under 70 on Saturday. Wyatt Provence finished at 2-under, Clark Sonnenberg finished at 1-under and Portillo rounded out the lineup at 20-over.

“I am proud of the fight the team showed all week”, said head coach Jake Harrington. “We played solid golf and will take a lot of momentum into the postseason. I am extremely proud of Carson for finishing tied for first, and having three rounds in the 60s shows he is in great form heading into the postseason, In addition Mesa continues his solid play with another top-10. It will be good to get home to Albuquerque for a couple weeks and tighten up a few things before going back to Emerald Valley GC to compete for the Mountain West Championship.”

The Lobos return to action April 25-27 with the Mountain West Championship, played in Creswell, Ore.