INDIANAPOLIS - The NCAA released the selections for the Division II Men's Golf Championships on Friday, and Northwest Nazarene men's golf will participate in the West Regional as the eighth seed chosen from the region.

"This is a great accomplishment for our team and an exciting step for our program," said head coach Craig Stensgaard. "While only five of our 13 players will get to travel to the event, it's a team victory. They have pushed each other all year and it has paid off for them."

This is NNU golf's first-ever selection, men or women, to NCAA Regionals as a team. Three individuals have gone to the championships on the men's side in the past, Colter Kautzman in 2005, Dale Raybould in 2008, and most recently, Nick Hardy in 2014. Grayson Giboney, Isaac Emerson, Cole Evarts, Tyler Joplin and Lane Strand will be adding their names to that list this year by representing NNU in the NCAA postseason.

The West/South Central Regional, hosted by Saint Martin's University, will be from May 6-8 at The Home Course in DuPont, Wash., the same location that the Nighthawks just played in for the GNAC Championships. Regionals will consist of three rounds, with the top four teams and the top individual golfer not from those four programs advancing to the Finals, which will be held May 17-21 at PGA National Resort's The Champions Course in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla.

"We have had really good prep for the national tournament, having played the host course twice already this spring," added Stensgaard. "Those six tournament rounds have taught us where the opportunities are and where the problem areas lurk in the shadows."

The West/South Central Regional will feature eight teams from each region, led by top seeds Sonoma State (West) and Oklahoma Christian (South Central). GNAC Champion Western Washington is the two-seed in the West Region, with fellow conference members Saint Martin's (fifth seed) and Montana State Billings (seventh) also receiving berths to the regional.

At the GNAC Championships this past Monday and Tuesday, the Nighthawks finished fourth, but closed out the tournament with a great final round to build momentum moving forward. Evarts was NNU's top finisher, tying for eighth individually.

"We know what it will take to play well. Our goal is to play these first three rounds of the national tournament and give ourselves a chance to advance to the national finals in Florida."