CARLSBAD, Ca. (WCMH) – The Ohio State men’s golf team nearly pulled off two upsets to reach the NCAA Championship’s final match but fell just short in extra holes against the number one team in the country.

Adam Wallin carded back-to-back birdies on the 17th and 18th holes at the Omni La Costa North Course in Carlsbad, CA, and followed with a par and birdie on 16 and 17 in extra holes, before Auburn’s Jackson Koivun dropped his birdie putt on 18, the 21st hole of the match, for the win.

The Buckeyes and Tigers were split after four matches – For Ohio State, Maxwell Moldovan defeated Carson Bacha 1UP and Tyler Sabo upset Josiah Gilbert 1UP. Auburn’s Brendan Valdes downed Jackson Chandler 1UP, and in a rematch of a U.S. Amateur semifinal J.M. Butler defeated Neal Shipley 2&1.

The Tigers edged the Buckeyes 3-2 in the semifinal, just hours after Ohio State upset second-seeded Vanderbilt 3-1-1.

Wallin’s victory in extra holes over Vandy’s Gordon Sargent, the second-ranked world amateur, was also in comeback fashion. Trailing two holes with two to play, Wallin parred 17 and 18, to Sargent’s bogies, forcing a 19th hole. Wallin got up and down out of the front bunker on the par-3 16th hole to help the Buckeyes advance.

The match also featured a hole-in-one by Sabo, a redshirt freshman. Ranked 2,209 among amateur golfers, Sabo’s ace on the 8th hole, followed by a birdie at the turn, placed him all-square with Vanderbilt’s William Moll.

Sabo trailed by two again but won holes 15 and 18 to tie the match. Sabo and Moll, the 15th ranked amateur in the country, were also set to go into extra holes before Wallin sealed the Buckeyes’ victory in the quarterfinal.

The Tigers and Commodores, seeded sixth and second in match play of the championship, are ranked as the top two teams in NCAA Division I.

The Tigers tee off against Florida State in the final on Wednesday afternoon.

NCAA CHAMPIONSHIP

At Par-72 Omni La Costa North Course; Carlsbad, CA

Quarterfinals

Georgia Tech (8) def. Illinois (1) 3-1

Ohio State (7) def. Vanderbilt (2) 3-1-1

Florida State (5) def. North Carolina (4) 3-1

Auburn (6) def. Virginia (3) 3-1

Semifinals

Florida State def. Georgia Tech 3-2

Auburn def. Ohio State 3-2