For four days in May, the Peach Belt stretched to West Virginia.

Peach Belt Conference golf rivals South Carolina-Aiken and Columbus State staged a links battle May 16-19 at the 7,030 yard, par-70 Cobb Course at the Resort at Glade Springs in Daniels, West Virginia — and in the end, the league champion South Carolina-Aiken Pacers also were the national champions.

The team title was the third straight for the Pacers, who once again rode the accuracy of seniors Dane Burkhart and Scott Brown to the crown. Burkhart, though, fell one shot shy of his second straight individual title, losing to St. Mary’s (Texas) junior Jamie Amoretti.

Burkhart wasn’t the Pacers’ lone weapon, though. In fact, the South Carolina-Aiken star was the worst of the four scorers in the final round, if a 2-over 72 can be called worst. Three other Pacers — Matt Giftos (68), Roberto Diaz added (69) and Brown (71) led the way to a tournament-low aggregate score of 280 that helped South Carolina-Aiken pull away for a 12-stroke win over Columbus State.

South Carolina-Aiken became the second team to win the Division II Men’s Golf Championships three straight times. Florida Southern also won three consecutive team titles from 1998 through 2000. South Carolina-Aiken also placed second in 1995, 1996 and 1999.

The Pacers in fact have dominated the sport over the last three years, winning 23 of their last 28 tournaments dating back to 2003-04. They’ve also won in all kinds of weather. Their national title in 2004 came in the heat and wind of central Florida. In 2005, thunderstorms peppered the championship course in Savannah, Georgia, and this year’s title came despite unseasonably cold temperatures in the 40s and 50s with wind gusting at more than 20 miles per hour.

South Carolina-Aiken wasn’t a sure bet, though, heading into the final round. The Pacers held a precarious three-shot edge over Cal State Bakersfield heading into the final round and were eight shots in front of Columbus State.

The lead shrank to one shot after the Pacers recorded two bogeys and a double bogey on the 10th hole, but South Carolina-Aiken rallied to finish 3-under par for the day.

Cal State Bakersfield, which led the field briefly in the third round, faded with a 298 on the final day to finish third, 21 strokes back. Lynn was fourth, followed by Cal State Stanislaus.

“The team worked hard, they believed in themselves and worked toward this the whole way, so it doesn’t surprise me that they won,” said South Carolina-Aiken head coach Michael Carlisle. “I’m happy for them because they did put in a tremendous effort this year and it paid off.”

Carlisle said before the final round that his team’s experience would be key.

“It definitely helps that these guys have won two national championships before,” he said. “The last two years, we’ve gone into the final round with a four-shot lead and a one-shot lead. That’s got to count for something.”

In the race for medalist honors, Amoretti carded a final-round 71 to keep Burkhart from repeating as champion. The two entered the final round tied at 1-under, but Burkhart bogeyed three straight holes to make the turn at 4-over. He birdied the 15th and 17th, though, and had a chance to tie with a birdie on the final hole, but his 15-foot putt rolled past the hole.

Florida Southern’s Greg Koch was third at 282. Diaz finished fourth after playing the final six holes 3-under par. Columbus State’s Christian Ries placed fifth.

South Carolina-Aiken’s Brown rebounded from a third-round 78 to shoot a 1-over 71 in the final round and was named the Division II Player of the Year. He tied for 11th, just missing his 12th top-10 finish in 13 events this year. His stroke average of 71.68 is the best in South Carolina-Aiken history.

Team results

1. S.C.-Aiken, 285-287-296-280 — 1,148; 2. Columbus St., 288-291-297-284 — 1,160; 3. Cal St. Bakersfield, 288-288-295-298 — 1,169; 4. Lynn, 293-288-297-300 — 1,178; 5. Cal St. Stanislaus, 294-300-298-287 — 1,179; 6. Fla. Southern, 288-297-300-295 — 1,180; 7. (tie) Cameron, 296-295-304-294 — 1,189; and Cal St. San B’dino, 296-303-296-294 — 1,189; 9. Pfeiffer, 293-297-304-299 — 1,193; 10. St. Mary’s (Tex.), 296-298-306-294 — 1,194; 11. Coker, 300-302-301-300 — 1,203; 12. Grand Canyon, 300-301-299-304 — 1,204; 13. Winona St., 298-297-312-307 — 1,214; 14. North Ala., 305-300-307-304 — 1,216; 15. Saginaw Valley, 306-304-303-308 — 1,221; 16. Concord, 304-310-308-302 — 1,224; 17. St. Cloud St., 304-304-314-304 — 1,226; 18. St. Martin’s, 310-294-305-319 — 1,228; 19. Barton, 299-310-313-308 — 1,230; 20. Goldey-Beacom, 329-313-321-320 — 1,283.

Individual results

1. Jamie Amoretti, St. Mary’s (Tex.), 70-69-70-71 — 280; 2. Dane Burkhart, S.C-Aiken, 67-70-72-72 — 281; 3. Greg Koch, Fla. Southern, 66-71-74-71 — 282; 4. Roberto Diaz, S.C.-Aiken, 71-71-73-69 — 284; 5. Christian Ries, Columbus St., 71-74-70-70 — 285; 6. Ryan Plummer, Cal St. San B’dino, 73-70-72-73 — 288; 7. (tie) Andrew Georgiou, Columbus St., 70-73-77-69 — 289, and Chris Little, St. Cloud St., 73-73-72-71 — 289; 9. Owen Mahaffey, Cameron, 71-73-72-74 — 290; 10. Travis Lovins, Cameron, 73-69-74-75 — 291.

For complete results, see The NCAA News online at www.ncaa.org.

Team results

1. S.C.-Aiken, 285-287-296-280 — 1,148; 2. Columbus St., 288-291-297-284 — 1,160; 3. Cal St. Bakersfield, 288-288-295-298 — 1,169; 4. Lynn, 293-288-297-300 — 1,178; 5. Cal St. Stanislaus, 294-300-298-287 — 1,179; 6. Fla. Southern, 288-297-300-295 — 1,180; 7. (tie) Cameron, 296-295-304-294 — 1,189; and Cal St. San B’dino, 296-303-296-294 — 1,189; 9. Pfeiffer, 293-297-304-299 — 1,193; 10. St. Mary’s (Tex.), 296-298-306-294 — 1,194; 11. Coker, 300-302-301-300 — 1,203; 12. Grand Canyon, 300-301-299-304 — 1,204; 13. Winona St., 298-297-312-307 — 1,214; 14. North Ala., 305-300-307-304 — 1,216; 15. Saginaw Valley, 306-304-303-308 — 1,221; 16. Concord, 304-310-308-302 — 1,224; 17. St. Cloud St., 304-304-314-304 — 1,226; 18. St. Martin’s, 310-294-305-319 — 1,228; 19. Barton, 299-310-313-308 — 1,230; 20. Goldey-Beacom, 329-313-321-320 — 1,283.

Individual results

1. Jamie Amoretti, St. Mary’s (Tex.), 70-69-70-71 — 280; 2. Dane Burkhart, S.C-Aiken, 67-70-72-72 — 281; 3. Greg Koch, Fla. Southern, 66-71-74-71 — 282; 4. Roberto Diaz, S.C.-Aiken, 71-71-73-69 — 284; 5. Christian Ries, Columbus St., 71-74-70-70 — 285; 6. Ryan Plummer, Cal St. San B’dino, 73-70-72-73 — 288; 7. (tie) Andrew Georgiou, Columbus St., 70-73-77-69 — 289, and Chris Little, St. Cloud St., 73-73-72-71 — 289; 9. Owen Mahaffey, Cameron, 71-73-72-74 — 290; 10. Travis Lovins, Cameron, 73-69-74-75 — 291; 11. (tie) Matt Bookatz, Lynn, 71-73-76-72 — 292; Scott Brown, S.C.-Aiken, 71-72-78-71 — 292; D.J. Fernando, Cal St. Bakersfield, 70-72-74-76 — 292, and Ryan Thornberry, Cal St. Stanislaus, 72-74-75-71 — 292; 15. (tie) Brady Baguio, Cal St. Bakersfield, 72-77-74-70 — 293; Chris Killmer, Cal St. Bakersfield, 73-70-74-76 — 293; Brandon Kuban, Columbus St., 75-71-77-70 — 293; Tim Reed, Fla. Southern, 72-76-72-73 — 293; Matt Rutledge, Grand Canyon, 70-75-75-73 — 293, and Cody Slover, Cal St. Bakersfield, 73-71-73-76 — 293; 21. (tie) Matt Hollinsead, Cal St. Stanislaus, 73-77-72-72 — 294, and Ian Kenwright, Pfeiffer, 74-75-74-71 — 294; 23. (tie) Heath Jones, North Ala., 75-73-72-75 — 295; Keir McNicoll, Lynn, 78-73-72-72 — 295; Blaine Rogers, Coker, 76-73-72-74 — 295, and Evan Scanlan, Columbus St., 73-73-73-76 — 295; 27. (tie) Matt Giftos, S.C.-Aiken, 77-74-77-68 — 296; Troy Merritt, Winona St., 73-68-78-77 — 296; Adam Miller, Saginaw Valley St., 74-72-76-74 — 296, and Shane Prante, St. Martin’s, 74-67-75-80 — 296; 31. (tie) Vincent Dumouchel, Coker, 72-73-77-75 — 297, and Dion Sirrianni, Lees-McRae, 70-75-74-78 — 297; 33. (tie) Jon Burke, Barton, 73-79-72-74 — 298, and Donald Zaruba III, Grand Canyon, 80-73-72-73 — 298; 35. (tie) Gavin Dear, Lynn, 75-72-74-78 — 299; Sean Packer, Western Wash., 75-73-73-78 — 299; Sebastian Salem, Lynn, 71-71-79-78 — 299; Bret Toftness, Winona St., 77-71-77-74 — 299, and Vince Venard, Cal St. Stanislaus, 70-73-73-83 — 299; 40. (tie) Nick Nosewicz, Barton, 74-74-80-72 — 300, and Matt Trammell, Cameron, 74-75-80-71 — 300; 42. (tie) Ralph Baxley, Cal St. San B’dino, 72-80-75-74 — 301; Darcy Donaldson, Concord, 71-79-76-75 — 301; Steve Larson, Grand Valley St., 73-72-80-76 — 301; Bryan Newman, Cal St. San B’dino, 78-74-75-74 — 301; Aaron Welch, St. Mary’s (Tex.), 77-76-76-72 — 301, and Matt Whelband, Pfeiffer, 71-81-73-76 — 301; 48. (tie) Kyle Albright, Columbus St., 74-75-78-75 — 302; Dane Bagnell, Cal St. San B’dino, 73-79-77-73 — 302; Marc France, Fla. Southern, 76-73-77-76 — 302, and Billy Hoyt, Grand Canyon, 73-77-74-78 — 302; 52. Hoyt McGarity, Lynn, 76-72-75-80 — 303; 53. (tie) Will Grace, West Fla., 76-71-80-77 — 304; Mike Joy, Pfeiffer, 74-72-81-77 — 304; Greg McAuley, St. Mary’s (Tex.), 76-75-78-75 — 304; Andy Moren, Cal St. Stanislaus, 79-77-78-70 — 304, and Clint Smith, S.C.-Aiken, 76-80-74-74 — 304; 58. (tie) Eric Forsman, Pfeiffer, 79-73-77-76 — 305; Matt Horn, Concord, 79-76-74-76 — 305; Johary Raveloarison, Coker, 77-78-73-77 — 305, and Derek Siesser, St. Martin’s, 77-72-74-82 — 305; 62. (tie) Brett Blondell, Fla. Southern, 74-78-77-77 — 306; Jonathan Henderson, North Ala., 79-74-76-77 — 306, and Tyler Hurst, Cal St. Bakersfield, 73-75-78-80 — 306; 65. (tie) David Harris, Pfeiffer, 74-77-80-76 — 307; Mike King, Saginaw Valley, 78-77-73-79 — 307, and Scott Urquhart, Saginaw Valley, 80-76-74-77 — 307; 68. Paul Todd, Barton, 71-77-75-85 — 308; 69. (tie) Daniel Creel, North Ala., 79-74-81-75 — 309; Blake Holbrook, Fla. Southern, 79-77-78-75 — 309; KC Lim, St. Mary’s (Tex.), 73-78-82-76 — 309, and Kevin Loeffler, Winona St., 73-79-79-78 — 309; 73. (tie) John Cliplef, St. Cloud St., 73-78-82-77 — 310, and Gord Swenson, Cal St. Stanislaus, 79-76-81-74 — 310; 75. (tie) Gary Morgan, Coker, 75-78-79-79 — 311, and Peter Perkins, St. Martin’s, 81-74-78-78 — 311; 77. (tie) Matt Horel, Winona St., 75-81-78-78 — 312, and Jake Zikoski, St. Cloud St., 79-75-80-78 — 312; 79. Peter Svajlen, Cameron, 78-78-83-74 — 313; 80. (tie) Michael Tobiason, Goldey-Beacom, 78-77-80-79 — 314, and Luke Tonkin, Concord, 79-78-78-79 — 314; 82. (tie) Jonathan Beaty, Grand Canyon, 77-80-78-80 — 315; Matt Gourgeot, North Ala., 73-79-86-77 — 315, and Wes Smith, North Ala., 78-80-78-79 — 315; 85. (tie) Cane Shumaker, Cameron, 81-79-78-78 — 316, and Michael Todd, Charleston (W.V.), 76-79-79-82 — 316; 87. Corey Grace, St. Cloud St., 79-78-82-78 — 317; 88. Sean Rutherford, Saginaw Valley, 74-82-80-82 — 318; 89. (tie) Chris Cramer, Concord, 75-82-90-72 — 319; Steve Cutler, Goldey-Beacom, 81-81-82-75 — 319, and Andrew Johnson, Grand Canyon, 83-76-78-82 — 319; 92. (tie) Sean Patrick, Saginaw Valley, 80-79-83-78 — 320, and Chris Westrum, St. Martin’s, 80-82-79-79 — 320; 94. Mark Agnew, Goldey-Beacom, 88-76-77-80 — 321; 95. Jordan Burns, St. Martin’s, 79-81-78-84 — 322; 96. (tie) Benoit Gordon, Coker, 79-89-81-74 — 323, and John Ritchey, Concord, 82-77-80-84 — 323; 98. (tie) Chad Bischoff, Winona St., 78-79-82-85 — 324, and Bill Clayton, Cal St. San B’dino, 85-84-74-81 — 324; 100. Braden Graham, St. Mary’s (Tex.), 77-80-91-77 — 325; 101. Grant Hanson, St. Cloud St., 82-80-80-84 — 326; 102. Nick Nardo, Goldey-Beacom, 82-79-82-86 — 329; 103. Joe Elwell, Barton, 81-84-89-83 — 337; 104. Justin Grossman, Goldey-Beacom, 91-88-82-93 — 354.