Trailing by one stroke heading into the final 18 holes of the MIAA Men's Golf NCAA Qualifier Tournament Saturday, the Hope men's golf team combined to shoot 282 to hopscotch Kalamazoo by four strokes to earn the MIAA's automatic berth for the NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship.

Thanks to a pair of 70s by Josh Gibson and Ben Kramer, Hope finished with an overall three-round score of 902. Kalamazoo, despite rounds of 71 by both Nick Ludka and Travis Veenhuis, posted a 297 for Saturday to finish with a 906 team score.

Hope's Kramer's 70 was the second in as many days. Kalamazoo's Ludka finished the three rounds with scores of 70, 73, and 71 to finish with a 214, two strokes better than Hope's Gibson (71-75-70--216).

With the win, Hope - ranked 12th nationally - will make their sixth consecutive appearance at the NCAAs. 

The NCAA Division III Men's Golf Championship tees off Tuesday, May 14 through Friday, May 17 at Keene Trace Golf Club in Nicholasville, Kentucky. Forty-two teams will participate in the four-day championship. After 36 holes of competition, the field will be cut to the top 18 teams.

MIAA Men's Golf NCAA Qualifier

1. Hope 310-300-292--902

2. Kalamazoo 307-302-297--906

3. Trine 311-310-311--932

4. Calvin 313-330-308--951