HERSHEY, Pa. – The nationally fifth-ranked/fifth-seeded University of South Carolina Aiken golf team had its 2012-13 season come to a close in a narrow 3-2 match play loss to national No. 7/fourth-seeded Lynn in the 2013 NCAA Division II Men's Golf Championship national quarterfinals on Thursday morning at the par-71, 6,984-yard East Course at the Hershey Country Club.
The loss in the national quarterfinals concludes a tremendous season for the Pacers.
USC Aiken claimed two team titles in the 2012-13 season. USC Aiken obtained its first team title of the year at the Ninth Annual Kiawah Island Invitational at the 6,875-yard, par-72 Cougar Point Golf Course in Kiawah Island, S.C. The Pacers finished the Ninth Annual Kiawah Island Invitational with a two-round team score of even-par 576 (281-295).
The Pacers also obtained top team honors at the 2013 Peach Belt Conference championship by concluding the three rounds of the Peach Belt Conference Men's Golf Championship at the par-72, 7,057-yard Mountain View Course at Callaway Gardens in Pine Mountain, Ga. with a team score of 873 (300-282-291).
USC Aiken now has nine Peach Belt Conference team championships (1995, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008 and 2013).
The Pacers after the league championship have now acquired 76 tournament wins in program history.
In addition to the two team victories, USC Aiken also obtained eight top-5 team finishes in its 13 events in the 2012-13 season. The Pacers finished second or better as a team five times in the 2012-13 season.
USC Aiken held the advantage in much of the national quarterfinal, but Lynn would come back down the stretch to claim the narrow 3-2 team victory.
First-Team senior All-Peach Belt Conference selections JP Solis (Morelia, Mexico/Lico Morelia) and Matt Atkins (Owensboro, Ky./Henderson State) picked up the two wins in the quarterfinals for the Pacers.
A three-time All-Peach Belt Conference selection, Solis carded an even 71 to best Lynn's Roberto Francioni (74) by three strokes.
The 2013 Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year, Atkins (74) closed out his illustrious Pacer career by downing Lynn's Flip Timmerman (77) by three strokes.
A 2013 All-Peach Belt Conference Tournament selection, senior Mark Dickson (Edinburgh, Scotland/Firrhill) narrowly missed on claiming victory over Lynn 2013 First-Team All-American Daniel Young. Dickson, who eagled No. 1 carded a 73, but Young finished just one stroke better at 72.
Two-time Honorable Mention All-American Hayden Letien (Sumter, S.C./Sumter HS) concluded his junior season for USC Aiken with a two-stroke loss to Lynn's Ernesto Vitienes. Letien carded a 75, while Vitienes posted a 73.
USC Aiken senior Taylor Welborn (LaGrange, Ga./Darton) ended a Pacer career that included individual medalist honors at the 2011 Kiawah Island Invitational with a four-stroke loss to Lynn's Jose Andres Miranda, who carded a 75. Welborn ended his efforts on the day with a 79.
