Oct. 28, 2008

Arlington, Texas - With a 41 stroke lead in the final round, UTA breezed by the field of 15 to capture its third consecutive UT Arlington Tournament title on Tuesday afternoon at the Waterchase Golf Course in Forth Worth, Texas.

The Mavs 41 stroke lead broke a previous school record of 33 strokes which is the largest margin victory in school history.

"I'm very excited about the win," said head men's golf coach Jay Rees. "A lot of work went into this tournament and I am so thankful for my assistant coach and all the volunteers that made this tournament possible."

"I'm very proud of Michael Van deVenter and Bobby Massa who led us to this tournament title today. I think that we need to be more consistent in our playing but we really needed this win and I think we are moving in the right direction as a team," added Rees.

As a team, UTA recorded an 864 team score while Southern Illinois University (904), Texas State (905), University of Oklahoma City (906), and University of Oklahoma Christian (907) rounded out the top-five spots.

Collecting his first tournament title of his collegiate career, Michael Van deVenter recorded a three-round tally of 205 (71-67-67). Van deVenter's 205 score puts him tied for third in UTA's lowest 54-hole tournament score record books with teammate Bobby Massa.

Just three strokes behind Van deVenter, Massa collected second place laurels, finishing with a 54-hole score of 208 (70-70-68) while Zack Fischer tied for 11th place with a three-round tally of 223 (77-71-75).

The Mavs will be back in action in Oahu, Hawaii where they will compete at the Turtle Bay Invitational on Monday, November 10.