Boulder City, NV. – After spending the weekend preparing through the practice round and other courses in the area, the Wheeling University Men's Golf team is ready to tee off the 2026 NCAA DII Men's Golf National Championships. The Cardinals are making their first team appearance on the National stage, and are being represented at the event for the first time since the 2022 event, when former Cardinal Yadhu Urs played as an individual. Round one action tees off Monday at 4:11 PM, with the Cardinals set to play with the #2 team in the country, Lee University.
The Cardinals are coming off a historic performance for their own at the NCAA DII Atlantic/East Regional Championships, where they finished third in the field. It was a strong start that would fuel the Cardinal's success, with the team shooting their best score of the spring in round one. They would finish +9 as a team, shooting 289 across the first 18 holes, and sat in a tie for third heading into the second day. They would put their foot on the gas in round two, dropping four strokes off their score, shooting a 285, and propelled their way to the top of the team leaderboard. They entered day three with confidence and the lead on their side, but after the first nine holes of day three, they found themselves below the cut line. The Cardinals would have to fight back on the back nine, and they did just that, getting their score down to 292 for the round. It was enough to earn them third in the tournament, finishing with a two-stroke lead over Glenville State, qualifying them for their first-ever National Championship event.
Leading the charge at Regionals was freshman Elias Ekenes-Fosback, who finished tied for sixth overall with a three-day score of 214. On day one, the freshman would shoot a 74 (+4) and found himself tied for 42nd, placing him right around the middle of the pack. He would begin his climb up the individual leaderboards in round two, making a 28 spot jump in the individual standings. He shot a 70 (E) for the round, and headed into the final round with momentum on his side. He kept that momentum going over the final 18 holes, shooting another even par in round three to wrap up his showing. It moved him officially into the top 10, finishing the event tied for 6th overall to lead the effort for the Cardinals. His 214 was a career-best for the freshman, including two single-round PR's across rounds two and three of the tournament.
The other two Cardinals to finish in the top 10 of the event were graduate student Sean Dobson and sophomore Zak Collins. Collins would get out to the faster start of the two players, being one of five golfers to shoot a sub-par score in round one. He finishes with a 69 (-1) putting him in the top five early on. He climbed as high as a tie for second after adding a 71 (+1) in round two, before finishing tied for ninth to end the event. Dobson was Wheeling's most consistent golfer of the event, shooting right around par in each of the three rounds. He started things off with a par in round one, and added just one stroke to his score in the second round, sitting at 141 after two rounds of play. The third round would see him finish with a 74 (+4) keeping him in the top 10 through the duration of the event. Dobson and Collins have been two of the leaders for the Cardinals throughout the season, and look to continue that leadership into the National Championship event.
As they head into their first-ever National Championship event, four of the five Cardinal golfers will be hitting the national stage for the first time in their careers. Collins played in last year's event as a member of Davis & Elkins's Men's Golf team, and looks to bring that experience to this year's event. The Cardinals will be competing in a 20-team field in Boulder City, Nevada, featuring the top three finishers from the Atlantic/East Region. Wheeling will be one of two teams represented from the Mountain East Conference (MEC) ), joining the University of Charleston at the event. The other 17 competitors include four teams from the Central/Midwest Region, seven teams from the South/Southeast Region, and six teams from the West/Southwest Region. The Cardinals will be paired up with the #2 team in the country, Lee University, for the first 36 holes of tournament play. They look to show they are not only a qualifier for the event, but that they can be a competitor for match play on Thursday.
Tournament Details
The 2026 NCAA DII Men's Golf National Championships will be hosted at Boulder Creek Golf Course in Boulder City, Nevada. The event runs from Monday, May 18th through Friday, May 22nd, with the 206 NCAA DII National Champion being crowned on Friday. The first three days of competition feature three rounds of stroke play, with the top four golfers scoring for their team in each round. After the three rounds are complete, the top eight teams will move on to match play Thursday and Friday. This consists of an eight-team tournament bracket, with teams golfers going head-to-head over 18 holes. Whoever's golfers win the most head-to-head match-ups advance in the bracket, with the finals being played on Friday.
The Details
Wheeling's round one tee times are set to begin at 4:11 PM Eastern time. You can follow along with the event live by clicking HERE.
