MCKINNEY — Tarleton State Men’s Golf’s poise won the prize, with the Texans taking the 2026 Western Athletic Conference Championship at The Clubs of Stonebridge Ranch – Dye Course on Wednesday.
After ending round one in third place, the Texans jumped in front on day two by shooting even par as a team. The Texans maintained their lead thanks to 21 combined birdies on the final day, edging out UT Arlington by one stroke to collect its first conference title in program history.
The program’s win gave Tarleton State Athletics its fifth conference tournament title at the Division I level (Baseball – 2024, Women’s Golf – 2025, Women’s Indoor Track & Field – 2026, Tennis – 2026). Men’s Golf, which is just in its fourth season of existence, is the fifth athletic program at Tarleton State to qualify for NCAA postseason competition since the Texans were elevated to Division I (Football, Track & Field, Women’s Golf, Tennis).
With Tarleton State’s conference title, the Texans earned the WAC’s automatic bid to the NCAA Regionals May 18-20.
Redshirt freshman Alvaro Pastor led the Texans with a 1-under-par performance, collecting third place on the player leaderboard. Sophomore Kellen Young collected his best placement as a Texan, tying for fourth after shooting an even par. Freshman Maximilian Bjornstrom also cracked the top 10 with a 54-hole score of 221.
“The beginning of the tournament wasn’t how we wanted to start, but at the same time it probably helped us,” head coach Chance Cain said. “It helped us get back in a flow and focus on us. Everybody was composed and did their part. We did a lot of prep in the last two weeks to get us to this point and we executed those things very well.
“We have a good group of guys. The team chemistry is awesome and it’s a group you want to be around. I’m excited to see what we can do at the next level and compete with the Power 4 programs in the NCAA Regionals.”
Hitting a weather delay shortly after teeing off, the Texans weathered the quick storm with execution and poise. Each player on Tarleton State’s five-man lineup birdied the No. 3 hole to stay out in front, with sophomore Luis Buech following suit with a pair of birdies on his sixth and seventh holes. Pastor’s birdie at the No. 6 hole allowed the Texans to take a five-stroke lead entering the last 12 holes of the final round.
UTA, however, climbed back thanks to an eagle on the No. 7 hole while combining for five birdies to start the back nine. Buech helped the Texans maintain control, coming up with another birdie on the No. 13 hole. The sophomore transfer from the University of New Mexico responded to a bogey by tallying back-to-back birdies to push the Texans into a tie for first.
Arth Sinha of UTA, the WAC Individual Champion, continued to anchor the Mavericks by shooting for or under par in his first seven holes of the back nine. Thanks to their continued execution, the Texans topped the opposition in the final three holes. Buech birdied two of his final three holes to put the Texans back to the top of the leaderboard.
Sophomore Drew Ironside, Young and Bjornstrom all shot for par on their final hole to put the Texans up by one stroke. Pastor shot for par on the No. 17 hole while Sinha bogeyed to give Tarleton State a two-stroke lead entering the last hole. The redshirt freshman overcame a drop on the No. 18 hole, helping the Texans finish the WAC Championship with hardware.
Tarleton State’s NCAA Regional site and opponents will be revealed on the NCAA Selection Show on Wednesday, May 6 at 1 p.m. on the Golf Channel.
Team Results
1. Tarleton State, 298-288-290-876 (+12)
2. UT Arlington, 292-296-289-877 (+13)
3. Abilene Christian, 295-296-289-880 (+16)
4. California Baptist, 302-293-289-884 (+20)
5. Utah Valley, 303-294-292-889 (+25)
6. Utah Tech, 310-292-302-904 (+40)
7. Southern Utah, 303-307-305 (+51)
Individual Results
3. Alvaro Pastor, 72-70-73-215 (-1)
T4. Kellen Young, 75-70-71-216 (E)
T9. Maximilian Bjornstrom, 75-73-73-221 (+5)
T17. Luis Buech, 76-75-73-224 (+8)
T34. Juan Ballester, 80-79-0
37. Drew Ironside, 0-0-73
*Ironside replaced Ballester in the third round.
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