EL DORADO, Ark. — The No. 26-ranked Harding men's golf team left no doubt at Mystic Creek Golf Club this week, turning a narrow lead into a 32-stroke blowout victory at the Arkansas Collegiate on Tuesday. The Bisons finished with a 54-hole total of 35-over 899 to claim the program's first-ever title at the event.

Harding was the only team in the 15-school field to post a sub-300 round, doing so twice with back-to-back scores of 299 on Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning. Tournament host Southern Arkansas finished a distant second at 67-over 931, followed by No. 32 Central Missouri at 70-over 934.

The victory marks Harding's second tournament win in its last three outings and the fifth time in program history the Bisons have won multiple events in a single season. It is the first time the feat has been achieved since the 2021-22 campaign.

Junior Dennis Staykov led the charge from start to finish, earning individual medalist honors with an even-par 216. Staykov was the only player in the field to finish at or below par for the tournament, securing his third career victory. He joins an elite group, becoming just the fourth golfer in Harding history to win three career tournaments, joining Blake Chase (2009-12), Mason Banger (2014-18), and Sam Tandy (2020-24).

Staykov's performance was defined by surgical iron play and massive distance. During Monday's opening round, he birdied the par-4 15th after sticking a 220-yard 4-iron to 10 feet, followed by a birdie on the par-3 16th with a 218-yard 5-iron to 8 feet.

He bookended his final round Tuesday with more highlight-reel moments. On his opening hole, he launched a 371-yard drive and reached the green with a 7-iron to set up a two-putt birdie. He capped the tournament on the 18th with a 350-yard drive and a 6-iron that finished pin-high. Facing a difficult recovery, he executed a perfect "bump-and-run" chip with a gap wedge into a slope, letting the ball trickle to five feet before draining the final birdie putt.

The Bisons dominated the top of the leaderboard, placing two golfers in the top two and three in the top 10. Junior Jose Arzu finished as the individual runner-up, carding an 8-over 224. Sophomore Austin Bibb provided a major final-round boost, carding a 3-over 75—the third-lowest score of the day—to climb the standings.

Harding now prepares for the postseason as they head to the Great American Conference Tournament. The three-day event will be held at The Club at Forest Ridge in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, on April 19-21.

Harding Individual Scores

1. Dennis Staykov: 70-73-73—216 (E)

2. Jose Arzu: 78-72-74—224 (+8)

9. Jose Manuel Peralta: 75-80-77—232 (+16)

12. William Pulley: 78-78-77—233 (+17)

13. Austin Bibb: 83-76-75—234 (+18)

42. Conner Geist (Ind.): 84-79-81—244 (+28)

Team Leaderboard

1. Harding: 301-299-299—899 (+35)

2. Southern Arkansas: 308-309-314—931 (+67)

3. Central Missouri: 313-313-308—934 (+70)

4. Tyler JC: 322-309-310—941 (+77)

5. Northeastern State: 324-319-309—952 (+88)