SANTA ANA PUEBLO, N.M. – The NM State men's and women's golf teams took on in-state rival New Mexico on Wednesday amid the final day of the NB3 Matchplay at Twin Warriors. With competitive matches throughout, NM State saw eight of the 10 matches reach the final hole; however, New Mexico would defeat the Aggies by a score of 3.0-2.0 on both sides.
 
Ultimately, the Arizona women and UNLV men would take home the team titles on their respective sides of the event. The Aggie women would finish tied for third with 4.0 points, while the Aggie men finished third with 7.0 points, edging out Big Ten foe Oregon.
 
On the women's side, the Aggies and Lobos went shot for shot, with three of the five matches reaching the 18th hole. Alexandria Armendariz was responsible for one of the two matches that finished early as she knocked off New Mexico's Ciara Rushmer, winning 4&3. She rolled to a dominant win after winning four of the opening seven holes to work her way to a 4UP advantage entering the eighth hole. Rushmer fought back with a win on hole nine, but Armendariz worked the lead back to four holes with a par on the par-five 12th hole to lead to the victory.
 
Both Emma Thompson and Rylee Salome also showed fortitude as they each halved their matches against their respective Lobo counterparts. In Thompson's case, she faced off with UNM's Chelsea Truong and neither side was able to build more than a 1UP lead throughout the entirety of the match. Eventually, Thompson entered the 18th hole trailing by one and in need of a win on the final hole. Following an impressive approach shot from Thompson, Truong was unable to match and allowed the window to crack open for Thompson. Later, Thompson would find herself in position to win the hole with two putts and she was able to deliver to earn the tie.
 
Meanwhile, the Aggies' Salome struggled in the early goings, giving UNM's Rebecca Galasso the chance to take a 4UP lead through 11 holes. Salome then came storming back with wins on hole 13, hole 15 and hole 16 to sit just one back entering the 18th hole. On the final hole of the match, Salome stuck her approach shot to a little over a foot, while her opponent was unable to find the green. After a chip shot and a missed putt, Galasso would concede the hole to the Aggie freshman, capping off the improbable comeback.
 
The men's team would also see their matches with the Lobos come down to the wire, with four of the five matches reaching hole 18. After UNM put the first point on the board, the Aggies' Max Chan and Ethan Klose would respond with 1.5 combined points across their two matches. Following a hot start that resulted in Chan building a 3UP lead through just three holes, the Lobos' Emil Albers would battle back to tie the match on the 12th hole. The two then traded blows, with Chan winning hole 16 and Albers winning hole 17. Later, both Chan and Albers would par the 18th to halve the point.
 
Meanwhile, Klose faced off against the Lobos' Wyatt Provence, who took a 2UP lead into the turn; however, Klose would birdie the 10th and 15th to pull even going into the final three holes. With the match still dead even on 18, Klose found himself on the green with an opportunity at a lengthy putt to win the match. The senior from Phoenix then ignited the crowd by rolling in the putt to win the match. This would serve as the Aggies' only win as later, Javier Delgadillo also earned half a point by tying with the Lobo's Johnnie Clark following a brief weather delay that paused Delgadillo before an important chip shot.
 
Match Three
Men | NM State 2.0, New Mexico 3.0
Mesa Falleur def. Anthony Lara 5&4
Max Chan tied Emil Albers
Ethan Klose def. Wyatt Provence 1UP
Javier Delgadillo tied Johnnie Clark
Thayer Plewe def. Mateo Payán 1UP
 
Women | NM State 2.0, New Mexico 3.0
Maria Caparrós Levin def. Emma Bunch 1UP
Emma Thompson tied Chelsea Truong
Rylee Salome tied Rebecca Galasso
Alexandria Armendariz def. Ciara Rushmer 4&3
Ava Cepeda def. Isa Laulhé 3&2
 
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For complete coverage of NM State Women's Golf, follow us on Twitter (@NMStateWGolf), Instagram (@NMStateWGolf) and Facebook (NM State Women's Golf). You can also follow along with Aggie Women's Golf via NMStateSports.com.