After making the 64-player match play field in a playoff, Derek Hitchner of Minneapolis won his fourth straight match Friday to reach the semifinals in the U.S. Men's Amateur in Paramus, N.J.
Hitchner, a fifth-year senior at Pepperdine, beat Shea Lague of Jamul, Calif., 3 and 2 in his quarterfinal match. He will face Ben Carr of Columbia, Ga., in the semifinals (Golf Channel, 2 p.m.).
"Seeding is irrelevant, just with how bunched the scoring was [in stroke play]. Everyone was playing well to get to this position," Hitchner said. "Obviously, there are many players that are extremely, extremely good. Whoever is on their game at this point is good enough to win, and I feel like I'm hopefully part of that."
Hitchner, 22, trailed for the first time in match play when he lost the fourth hole against Lague, but he birdied holes No. 7, 9 and 11 to go three up and virtually clinched the match when he went 3 up again with a birdie n the 135-yard 15th hole when he hit the flagstick on his drive.
Etc.
St. Thomas golfers Matt Armstrong and Cole Nasby tallied two birdies and an eagle over their final three holes Thursday before prevailing in a three-hole playoff over the team of Jesse Polk and Sammy Schmitz to claim the 61st Minnesota Golf Association Amateur Four-Ball Championship at Le Sueur Country Club.
Peter Maki was named the interim head men's and women's golf coach at Concordia (St. Paul). He has been the program's top assistant coach for the previous three and a half seasons.
