Grand Rapids Reporter

The Ferris State University men's golf team concluded its season with a ninth-place finish at the 2024 NCAA Division II National Championships. The event took place on May 23 at the Orange County National Golf Center in Winter Garden, Florida. The Bulldogs completed the tournament with a final round score of even par, resulting in an overall score of 857 or +5 for the 54-hole competition.

The top eight teams from the stroke play portion advanced to the national quarterfinals, and Ferris State narrowly missed this cut by four strokes behind West Texas A&M. West Florida emerged as the team champion with a 14-under-par score.

FSU head coach Sam Stark expressed pride in his team's performance: "It was an incredible season by an impressive group of young men, who represented our program and our university with class, dedication and grit." He added that while they were disappointed not to advance to match play, they were proud of their effort.

Individually, Nathan Kraynyk stood out by finishing as the national runner-up. He tied for second place on the individual leaderboard with a total score of 206 after shooting rounds of 70, 69, and a final round of 67. Coach Stark praised Kraynyk's efforts: "What a week of golf for this Dawg," he said.

Other notable performances included Caleb Bond and Zach Koerner, both tying for 37th place with scores of 216. McCoy Biagioli finished tied for 77th at 222, while Sam Havey ended tied for 83rd with a total score of 223.

This year's appearance marked Ferris State's first return to the national championships since 2019 and their best finish since placing second in the Midwest/Central Super Regional in Kearney, Nebraska in 2017. The team qualified for nationals following a fifth-place finish at the NCAA D2 Midwest/Central Super Regional Championships earlier this month.

Ferris State also claimed its 22nd GLIAC Championship title by defeating Grand Valley State on April 14 in Augusta, Michigan.