The Lindenwood men's golf team advanced to the NCAA Division II National Championships for the first time in program history on Wednesday in Axtell, Neb. The Lions finished third in the NCAA Midwest/Central Regional to punch their tickets to Florida.
 
Lindenwood set a program record by shooting 26-under for the 54-hole tournament. The Lions opened the event with scores of 279 and 277, which placed them in second. On Wednesday, the Lions finished off the tournament by shooting a six-under 282. Their final total of 838 was five shots good enough to advance along with Central Missouri (831), Ferris State (836), and Arkansas Tech (840). Lindenwood shattered its previous 54-hole team record by 21 shots.
 
Brad Currier led Lindenwood by shooting a six-under 210 for the event, which placed him in a tie for 20th overall. He had his best round on Wednesday with a 68. Juan Torrente and Ryan Dyck shot 211 and 213 respectively, and both were also under par for their final rounds. Torrente was the only Lion to finish under par for all three days. Alejandro Canazares finished with a 215 and Yente Van Doren had a 217 for the week. Both players had two rounds under par during the tournament.
 
One of the biggest reasons for Lindenwood advancing was its play on the par-three and par-five holes. Lindenwood was just six-over on par threes for the week, the fourth-best mark in the tournament. The Lions were 24-under on par fives, tying for the tournament-high in that category. Lindenwood finished with 61 birdies, the second-most out of the 20 teams at the event.
 
Lindenwood will next head to Reunion Resort in Kissimmee, Fla., where the national championships will begin on May 22. The Lions will be one of 20 teams that play 54 holes over three days. The top eight teams after that will play a match-play bracket on May 25-26 to determine the national champion.