Navy Golf Claims Star with Impressive Sunday Singles Play

WEST POINT, N.Y. //  The Navy men's golf team won five of the seven singles matches on Sunday, including the final two, to defeat the Black Knights 6.5-4.5 in the annual Army-Navy Star Match played at the West Point Golf Course in West Point, N.Y.

Playing in his first Star Match, Tim Luckett gave Navy the go-ahead point with an eagle putt on the 18th, before Sebastian Alonzo secured the final point to lead the Mids to their second-consecutive Star victory and their first at West Point since 2016. Navy now leads this year's overall Army-Navy Star Series presented by USAA, 2-1.

"How about those Midshipmen," said an elated Jimmy Stobs, who is in his fifth season leading Navy. "I'm very excited for our guys. To win on their course is very special."

The West Point Golf Club has not been kind to the Mids over the last decade, however, it has become a favorite stop for the Mids as of late. Last April, Navy overcame an eight-stroke deficit to win the 2026 Patriot League Men's Golf Championship played at the par-70 West Point Golf Club. Among the six players who helped lead Navy to victory were three who played in this weekend's Star Match. 

"I think it certainly helped Sebastian and Hudson today in singles play," said Stobs about Navy's prior experience playing at the West Point Golf Club. "Yesterday the coaches mixed up the pin placement a little bit, but today our players were more comfortable and it showed in their play. I felt good about our singles play going into today and I thought we had some players hit clutch shots down the stretch."

The day began with Navy trailing the Black Knights 2.5-1.5 following Saturday's four-ball matches. Army pushed its lead to two after freshman Andre Change cruised to a 5&4 victory over Navy senior Danny Auffant.

The Mids answered with a string of three-consecutive wins to take their first lead of the day. Second-year standout Hudson Mitchell, who won both his four-ball and singles matches a year ago, triggered the Navy run with a 6&5 victory over fellow sophomore William Huang. Josh Durthaler bounced back from a narrow loss in his four-ball match on Saturday to dominate Army freshman Jack Parel 5&4 as Navy pulled even with the Black Knights.

Elijah Estonilo made it three in a row for the Mids, as the rookie scored a 2&1 victory over Army junior Ryan Lopez to give Navy a 4.5-3.5 advantage.

Army evened the match (4.5-4.5) behind a 3&1 victory by junior Tyson Sparks, but just minutes later Luckett stepped up and sank an eagle putt on the 18th hole to secure the 2-up win over sophomore Grant Paolucci and give Navy a 5.5-4.5 advantage.

With the final match closing in, the Mids just needed to halve the point to secure the victory. Alonzo, however, wouldn't be denied as he secured the Star for the Mids by way of a 3&2 victory over Army team captain Drew Jeffords.

Navy will be back in action when it makes the trip to Oakmont, Pa. to battle service academy rivals Army and Air Force in the Commander-In-Chief's Cup slated for Oct. 13-14. The Oakmont Country Club, widely regarded as the "oldest top-ranked golf course in the United States and was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1987, will serve as the host of the tournament. It most recently hosted its record tenth U.S. Open in 2025.

With five players finishing among the top 10, including individual medalist Jack Tarzy, Navy dominated Army and Air Force to win the program's first outright Commander-In-Chief's Cup last October at the Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, N.Y. The Mids, who shot a 128-over par 1388 (play 8, count 6), defeated Army (1406, +146) by 18 strokes and Air Force (1411, +151) by 23 strokes.

Oct. 3, 2026 | West Point, N.Y.
Navy 6.5 | Army 4.5
 
Four-Ball Matches
Sebastian Alonzo / Colin Alstrin vs. William Huang / Grant Paolucci (A) / Halved
Drew Jeffords / Jack Parel (A) def. Danny Auffant / Tim Luckett (N) / 3&2
Payton Cowhey / Elijah Estonilo (N) def. Andre Chang and Ryan Lopez (A) / 3&1
Tyson Sparks / Matthew Duke (A) def. Hudson Mitchell / Josh Durthaler (N) / 3&2
 
Singles Matches
Elijah Estonilo (N) def. Ryan Lopez (A), 2&1
Andre Chang (A) def. Danny Auffant (N), 5&4
Tim Luckett (N) def. Grant Paolucci (A), 2-up
Tyson Sparks (A) def. Payton Cowhey (N), 3&1
Josh Durthaler (N) def. Jack Parel (A), 5&4
Hudson Mitchell (N) def. William Huang (A), 6&5
Sebastian Alonzo (N) def. Drew Jeffords (A), 3&2