SUGAR GROVE, Ill. – Vanderbilt and Southern California recorded the top rounds of the day Sunday in the team competition while Texas' Scottie Scheffler posted a score of 68 for the third straight round to move out to a three-stroke lead in the individual race at the 2017 NCAA Division I Men's Golf Championships at Rich Harvest Farms.
 
Following the round, the field was trimmed to 15 teams and nine individuals not on one of those teams for the final day of stroke play Monday, which tees off at 11:30 a.m.  Tickets are available at the gate, located at the Granart Road entrance in Sugar Grove, and online at NCAA.com.  Following Monday's round, the 2017 NCAA individual champion will be crowned, with the top eight teams moving on to match play. The quarterfinals and semifinals will be played Tuesday, May 30, with the championship match on Wednesday, May 31. 
 
The Golf Channel will broadcast live from the NCAA Men's Golf Championship Monday from 3-7 p.m. (CT) with pre- and postgame coverage on Golf Central, daily updates on Morning Drive and online via Golf Channel Digital.  News and tournament coverage also will be streamed on Golf Channel Digital.
 
On Sunday, Vanderbilt's Theo Humphrey and John Augenstein each carded scores of three-under par 69 to lead the Commodores into the lead with a team score of eight-under par 280. Head Coach Scott Limbaugh was pleased with the effort from all five members of his team.
 
"For us, it's all about having all five guys in it on the golf course," he said. "With a championship of this caliber, everyone is nervous and everything is hard. So, the more times we can get everybody in there fighting, it really matters. I was proud of the entire team effort."
 
Southern California, which moved from sixth place into a tie for second with its round of eight-under par 280, was led by senior Rico Hoey, who tied the collegiate course record with a six-under par 66 that included eight birdies. Hoey is tied for fifth for the tournament at eight under par 208.  
 
"It was a great day for us, Rico (Hoey) had an awesome day, he really put us on his back, although other guys played solid too," said USC Head Coach Chris Zambri.  "I think we had three under-par rounds, including Rico's, it was good."
 
Oklahoma and second round leader UNLV joined the Trojans in the tie for second at 17-under 847, one stroke behind Vanderbilt.  Illinois shot a three-under 285 on the round, led by junior Dylan Meyer's three-under par 69.  Meyer is one of two players tied for third in the individual competition at nine-under par 207.
 
Texas' Scheffler leads Braden Thornberry of Ole Miss by two strokes in the chase for individual medalist honors.  Scheffler's third consecutive round of four-under par included six birdies, while Thornberry recorded five birdies on the back nine Sunday and stands at 10-under par 206 on the par 72, 7,300 layout at Rich Harvest Farms. Scheffler said the key was maintaining a rhythm and sticking to his plan each round.
 
"You need a game plan for sure," Scheffler said. "For the most part, the game plan changes day-by-day with the wind and the weather and I think it'll change tomorrow with a good amount of wind (forecast). (I'll) just figure it out in the morning when I get up and get a plan going and stick to that."
 
Also in the "race to eight" following Sunday's round are sixth place Oklahoma State (-12), Baylor (-9) and Virginia (-9) in a tie for seventh, Auburn (-8), LSU (-6), Texas (-5), Florida State (-4) and Oregon (+1).  Pepperdine was the last team to move into the top 15 as they posted a team score of one-under par 287 in the afternoon wave to move from 19^th place into 14^th.  UCF stands in 15^th and will play Monday as they finished one stroke ahead of Arizona State.  Sophomore Kyler Tate led the Knights with a three-under par 69 that included a string of five consecutive birdies and is tied for fifth place individually.
 
In addition to Thornberry, Arkansas' Mason Overstreet (-6), Alabama's Jonathan Hardee (-5), Lipscomb's Dawson Armstrong (-5), North Carolina's Ben Griffin (-2), Iowa State's Denzel Ieremia (-2), Troy's Cam Norman (-1) and Alex Del Rey Gonzalez (-1) and Chun An Yu (-1) of Arizona State will compete Monday for the individual crown.
 
Fourth round action gets underway with tee times beginning at 11:30 a.m. (CT). Follow team and individual results at ncaa.com/2017-di-mens-golf-leaderboard and for tournament central news, niuhuskies.com.
 
NCAA DIVISION I MEN'S GOLF CHAMPIONSHIPS
Monday, May 29 (Times Local-CT)
Approx. 11:30 a.m.                      Tee times begin for final round
2-3 p.m.                                         Golf Central Pre Game
3-7 p.m.                                         Live coverage, final round, individual stroke play championship
7-8 p.m.                                         Golf Central
7:10 p.m.                                       Individual medalist awards ceremony
7:25 p.m.                                       Quarterfinal Match Play pairings determined

-- NIU --