Full NCAA Release
WEST CHESTER, Pa.- After capturing its sixth PSAC Championship and first since 2018, the West Chester University men's golf team learned that it would be the second seed in the Atlantic Region at the NCAA Division II Atlantic/East Regional Championships at Sunnehanna Country Club in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, when Tournament play begins on May 7.
West Chester makes its first team appearance at the Regional Championships since May 2022, when the Golden Rams made their ninth NCAA Tournament appearance under head coach Harry Hammond and their first since 2019. The Golden Rams sent a pair of individuals to the Championships in 2023 as
Connor Strine and
Ryan D'Ariano competed in that season.
Led by an eighth-place individual finish from Brock Fassnacht, which was the highest individual finish by a Golden Ram since Tyler Maiman finished in a tie for sixth in 2016, West Chester finished sixth at the 2022 Regional Championships at Ravenwood Golf Club in Victor, New York, which was the team's best finish under Hammond.
West Chester makes its first regional appearance as a team under the tutelage of head coach
Chris Merce, who is in his third season at the helm after taking the reins in the fall of 2023.
Under Merce's guidance, West Chester enjoyed an outstanding 2025-26 season, including four wins, including the team's sixth PSAC Championship, and eight top-three finishes, including a win at the Cecil C. Spadafora Invitational on April 14-15 and a second-place finish at the Bedford Springs Intercollegiate at Omni Bedford Springs last week.
At the PSAC Championships, which is how West Chester earned the automatic bid to the NCAA Regional Championships, West Chester recorded a 54-hole score of 891 (295, 299, 297)to finish four strokes clear of Pitt-Johnstown (895), led by a fifth-place finish by
Paul-Arthur Roth (Virginia Beach, Va./Frank W. Cox) at +5 (73, 71, 77;221) as one of three Golden Rams in the top-10.
Will Hilton (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine Richland) and
Patrick Carl (Mount Airy, Md./South Carroll) joined Roth in the top-10 in seventh (+6; 75, 76, 71; 222) and 10
th (+8; 72, 78, 74; 224), respectively.
West Chester will be joined at Sunnehanna by Gannon, Pitt-Johnstown, IUP, Bluefield State, Cal (Pa.), Charleston (W.V.), Winston-Salem State, Glenville State, Fairmont State, Fayetteville State, Wheeling, and West Liberty from the Atlantic Region along with Adelphi, Assumption, Post, Southern New Hampshire, Bentley, St. Thomas Aquinas, and Wilmington from the East Region. Individually, Christopher Baguma (Virginia State), Trey Rios (Shepherd), Lucio Pavicich (Davis & Elkins), Morgan DeHoff (Shepherd), Pablo Hidalgo (Felician), Jaden Minter (Jefferson), Brandon Vitarisi (Saint Anselm), and Seth Saffel (Franklin Pierce) all qualified.
Additionally, for the first time since 2018, the West Chester women will also compete in the NCAA Regional Championships as the Golden Rams head to Findlay, Ohio, on May 4 for the East Regional, which will be played May 4-6 at Findlay Country Club.
