NAMPA, Idaho – Championship season is finally back. For the first time since the 2019-20 winter season, the GNAC is set to host a conference championship as Northwest Nazarene men's and women's golf will join three other programs in competing for a title next week.
 
Championships Information
 
Dates: Monday, April 19 and Tuesday, April 20
Location: The Home Course in DuPont, Washington
            Men's Yardage: Rounds 1 & 2 – Par 72, 6,902 Yards / Round 3 – Par 72, 6,910 Yards
            Women's Yardage: Par 72, 5,815 Yards
Competing Teams: NNU, Montana State Billings, Saint Martin's, Western Washington
 
Men's Live Scoring: http://results.golfstat.com//public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=22669
Women's Live Scoring: http://results.golfstat.com/public/leaderboards/gsnav.cfm?pg=participants&tid=21316
 
*In accordance with the GNAC's no spectator policy for the 2021 spring season, fans will not be allowed to attend either day of the championships.
 
From Coach Stensgaard
 
"This spring has been unique because we've had a lot of head-to-head competition against the other GNAC schools. We've had some success already against them, but have also stubbed our toe a couple of times. This year's venue, The Home Course, is a place that we've all played in events before, so while that helps everyone at the championships, it's definitely a positive for our team as well. I think we're really prepared and know what it will take to be successful this weekend."
 
Men's Preview
 
The Nighthawks come into the championship with plenty at stake in terms of NCAA postseason contention. A team victory next week would be the easiest path, guaranteeing a berth into the NCAA Regionals via the conference's automatic qualifier. That said, NNU is also currently in position to make the regionals according to the latest NCAA regional rankings, slotting in seventh in the West with the top eight teams earning qualification. Another round of regional rankings is set to come out tomorrow (4/16), while the final rankings announcing the official qualifiers is set to be released the following Friday (4/23).
 
Despite having a shortened season without any competitions in the fall and limited opportunities to play this spring, the men were able to compete in five events over the last month. NNU won the Warrior Spring Invite at Lewis & Clark, with Isaac Emerson finishing second overall. In three events that included the other GNAC teams, the Nighthawks finished above MSUB two out of three times but trailed WWU and SMU at each invite. The Nighthawks played one event at the same course that the championships will be held in DuPont, placing ninth.
 
The 2019-20 GNAC Championship was not held due to COVID-19, so 2018-19 was the last time that the NNU men competed in a conference championship. That year, the Nighthawks finished sixth out of six teams. Western Washington won the team title, and still serves as the defending champions. Only a couple of athletes remain from that season for the Nighthawks, though, as this current group figures to be in the mix for a conference title on Tuesday, which would be just the second in program history after taking the crown in 2014.
 
Women's Preview
 
Along with the other three programs at the championships, the Nighthawks will likely need to win the tournament and secure the conference's automatic qualifier to reach the NCAA Regionals, as no GNAC squads were among the 11 ranked teams in the West Region last week. Another round of regional rankings is set to come out later today (4/15), while the final rankings announcing the official qualifiers is set to be released on Monday, April 26.
 
The Nighthawks competed in six events this spring, highlighted by a team victory in their exhibition at the Warrior Spring Invitational. NNU also had a runner-up finish at the Western Washington Invite and placed third out of eight teams at the Nighthawks Invitational hosted in California. In events that had other GNAC teams, NNU finished ahead of MSUB twice, SMU twice, and WWU once, while placing behind WWU twice, SMU once, and MSUB once.
 
The 2019-20 GNAC Championship was not held due to COVID-19, so 2018-19 was the last time that the NNU women competed in a conference championship. That year, the Nighthawks finished fourth out of six teams. Simon Fraser won the team title, and still serves as the defending champions, but will not be able to compete this season due to the closure of the border. With how close the four competing teams have been at mutual events this season; the championship appears to be up for grabs and should come down to a great finish.