| Mountain Classic Match Play |
| SCHEDULE |
Monday, Feb. 13 | 8 a.m. MST | Rounds 1 & 2 |
|
Tuesday, Feb. 14 | 8 a.m. MST | Round 3 |
| COURSE |
The Classic Club | Palm Desert, Calif. |
| PAR | YARDAGE |
Par 72 | 6,081 Yards |
| FIELD |
Boise State (Co-Host), Wyoming (Co-Host), Nevada, Portland, Seattle U, Southern Utah, Montana State, Northern Arizona |
| RESULTS |
Golfstat |
| FOLLOW US |
NAU Golf on Facebook | NAU Golf on Twitter | NAU Golf on Instagram |
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (February 12, 2023) – The defending Big Sky Conference champions take to course for the start of the Spring season on Monday and Tuesday, Feb. 13-14, in Palm Desert, Calif. The NAU golf team will be competing in the Mountain Classic Match Play, co-hosted by Boise State and Wyoming at The Classic Club.
Action begins at 8 a.m. Mountain Standard time on both days and the 'Jacks will participate in three 18-hole match play team competitions with two rounds on Monday and one on Tuesday to conclude competition.
Along with the hosts, Northern Arizona will compete against Nevada, Portland, Seattle U, Southern Utah and Big Sky foe Montana State. All eight teams are ranked by Golfstat with Nevada owning the highest ranking of No. 60. The Lumberjacks are ranked No. 123, sitting only behind the Broncos (No. 113) and Seattle U (No. 121).
Seattle U won last year's title with Boise State finishing runner-up. This will be NAU's first appearance at this competition.
Seven Lumberjacks will be representing over the course of two days in
Lorel Hayward,
Aleksandra Chekalina,
Lizzie Neale,
Ellena Slater and
Ekaterina Malakhova.
Nina Lukyanenko and
Ashley Croft will be competing as individuals.
For match play, the Lumberjacks will go head-to-head with each team's lineup playing against each other. A hole is won by completing it in the fewest amount of strokes and a match is won when a golfer is winning by more holes than there is left to be played.
The Lumberjacks were selected to finish second in this year's preseason coaches poll. NAU is led by the reigning unanimous Big Sky Coach of the Year,
Brad Bedortha who is in his 15th season at the helm of NAU golf. The honor was the fourth of his career (2009, 2013, 2015). Northern Arizona's 2022 title was the ninth in program history and the fourth under Bedortha.
Malakhova, the 2022 individual Big Sky Champion, earned a spot on the All-Big Sky first team for the second consecutive year, while Chekalina was a third-team selection and Croft earned an honorable mention nod. All four of NAU's returners finished in the top-25 at last year's Big Sky Championships.
The Lumberjacks competed in four tournaments in the Fall and finished in the top-ten twice, ending on a high note at the Clash of Boulder Creek where they finished sixth. They also posted the lowest round of the season at three-under par and tied the best finish of the season at 15-over par after shooting an 879 (302-296-285).
After the Spring opener, Northern Arizona will take about a two week break before resuming action in Phoenix, Ariz., for the GCU Invitational hosted by Grand Canyon. The Lumberjacks finished the event in sixth place last season.
