Still Riding High

Colorado Christian University men’s golf posts third straight top-5 team finish in NCAA Division II nationals

By Gary Baines – 5/21/2026

It’s been quite a run for the Colorado Christian University men’s golf team over the last three seasons — perhaps the best ever, based on national championship results, for a college golf program based in Colorado.

On Thursday, the university in Lakewood finished fifth in the men’s NCAA Division II nationals as the Cougars fell 3-2 in the medal match-play quarterfinals to top-seeded Florida Southern in Boulder City, Nev.

That means that in the last three years, CCU has won the national DII title (2024), placed runner-up in a playoff last year, and tied for fifth this time around. 

And, perhaps most impressive, this year’s team for the national championships featured just one player left over from last season’s national lineup — Peyton Jones. But CCU rebuilt and the very next year returned to the match-play portion of the national tournament. The Cougars came into the week ranked No. 23 in the nation in men’s DII golf, but performed much better than their ranking would indicate.

Despite facing the top seed from stroke play, the team match against Florida Southern was decided by FSU’s Anthony Monteleone beating CCU’s Tyler DeBruyckere by one stroke on the 18th hole, making par to DeBruyckere’s bogey to score a 70-71 victory. DeBruyckere was three strokes ahead in the match through seven holes.

Winning their individual matches for CCU on Thursday were Lance Christensen Jr., who finished national runner-up on Wednesday in the stroke-play portion of the event, and Jones — both of whom scored 2-up victories.

For all the results from the men’s DII nationals, CLICK HERE.