Sooners Qualify for Match Play for First Time

	Team	1	2	3	4	Total
1.	Texas	289	281	277	287	1134
2.	Illinois	290	280	289	276	1135
3.	LSU	286	282	283	285	1136
T4.	USC	283	282	285	287	1137
T4.	Vanderbilt	283	280	282	292	1137
6.	Oregon	291	277	284	287	1139
7.	South Carolina	287	285	293	277	1142
8.	Oklahoma	290	288	289	277	1144

	OU Players	1	2	3	4	Total
T26.	M. McGreevy	71	70	80	66	287
T26.	B. Dalke	71	73	75	68	287
T51.	B. Hale	78	72	70	71	291
T57.	L. Kwon	73	73	73	73	292
T66.	G. Hirschman	75	76	71	72	294

NORMAN – The No. 18 seed Oklahoma men's golf team is advancing to the match play competition of the 2016 NCAA Championships after finishing the fourth round of stroke play in eighth. The tournament is taking place at the par-70, 7,014-yard Eugene Country Club in Eugene, Ore.

Entering the day in a tie for 14th place, the Sooners shot a 277 (-3), matching the second-best round of the tournament among all 30 squads, to surge six places into eighth with an overall 1144 (+24). This placing qualified OU for the quarterfinals of match play, marking the first time the Sooners have made it to match play, which was introduced to the championships in 2009.

"What a day, what a great day!" seventh-year OU head coach Ryan Hybl said. "The guys were phenomenal all day and kept fighting until the end. This is an opportunity for us and something we have been talking about since August."

The top eight teams qualify out of stroke play for the quarterfinals. The Sooners will face No. 2 seed Texas in the quarterfinals after the Longhorns finished first in stroke play at 1134 (+14). No. 4 Illinois finished second at 1135 (+15) and will face No. 19 South Carolina, who finished seventh at 1142 (+22). No. 12 seed and defending national champion LSU took third at 1136 (+16) and will face No. 20 Oregon, who finished sixth at 1139 (+19). No. 3 USC and No. 8 Vanderbilt will face each other after tying for fourth at 1137 (+17).

Junior Max McGreevy and freshman Brad Dalke were the best finishers for the Sooners, claiming a share of 26th place in the individual competition with a four-round 287 (+7). McGreevy bounced back from a difficult third round to card a 66 (-4) on Monday, matching his career-low and pocketing seven birdies. Dalke also shot under-par, firing a 68 (-2) Monday, his fifth round in the 60s of this season.

Freshman Blaine Hale finished individually in 51st place at 291 (+11). The Dallas, Texas, native recorded a solid 71 (+1) in the fourth round, collecting three clutch birdies on the front nine.

Senior Luke Kwon was consistent on Monday, tallying a 73 (+3) for the fourth round in a row. He claimed a share of 57th individually at 292 (+12).

Rounding out the OU lineup was Grant Hirschman, who finished tied for 66th place individually with an overall 294 (+14). The sophomore posted a 72 (+2) in the final round of stroke play, shooting five birdies.

The Sooners will face the Longhorns in match play beginning Tuesday at 9:50 a.m. CT from hole No. 1. Live stats will be available on GolfStat.com, and the Golf Channel will televise the competition starting at 12:30 p.m.