July 13, 2007

LEHI, Utah - Nic van Vuuren, who just finished up his senior season on the Utah Valley golf team, defeated Steve Poulson, 1 up, on Friday to move into the quarterfinals of the Utah State Am at Thanksgiving Point Golf Course.

It's the third time in three attempts that van Vuuren, a native of South Africa, has reached the final eight at the State Am.

van Vuuren topped Brady Boman 3 & 2 earlier in the day while Poulson birdied four of his last eight holes to edge Greg Buckway 2 & 1.

Tomorrow's action will pit van Vuuren against Robbie Fillmore in the morning. A win would put the UV golfer in the final four against the winner between Dan Horner and Scott Clark in the afternoon.

In 2005, van Vuuren reached the quarters before falling to Zach Johnson in a three-hole playoff. Then in 2006 he lost 3 & 2 in the semifinals to eventual champion Tony Finau.

After an opening round 76, van Vuuren was on the outside looking in at a chance to reach the top 32. But a second round 68 catapulted him all the way to the 10th seed overall for Friday morning's opening round of match play.

For complete coverage and live updates of tomorrow's rounds, go to www.uga.org.