ALEXANDRIA, La.| Alabama State found itself 13 strokes off the lead heading into the final round of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) championships Wednesday, and a valiant effort pulled them within striking distance heading down the stretch.

Unfortunately, Prairie View A&M was able to hold on to the lead on the back nine despite low rounds from Ben Swaffield, Thacher Neal and Mbongeni Maphosa of Alabama State; leaving the Hornets three shots off the pace and a runner-up finish at the SWAC Championships at the Oak Wing Golf Club.

Alabama State shot the low round of the tournament in the final round, shooting just three over par (291); while Prairie View shot a final round 13-over par (301). The Panthers ended the tournament at 32-over par (896), just ahead of Alabama State at 35-over par (899). Texas Southern finished third (913) and UAPB (934) fourth in the tournament.

Neal, the SWAC Freshman of the Year, finished third to lead Alabama State as he shot a final round one-over par (73) to end the tournament at seven-over par (223). He finished two shots behind Lucas Elliott from Texas Southern in second, and five shots behind low medalist Laurence Crea of Prairie View A&M at two-over par (218).

Maphosa finished fourth overall with a three-round total of eight-over par (224) after a final round 74; while Swaffield shot the low round of the day at one-under par (71) to finish the tournament at nine-over par (225) and a fifth place finish. The final round score from Swaffield was the second-lowest score of the tournament, trailing only the 69 shot by Crea in the opening round.

The trio was named all-tournament along with Crea and Elliot.

Thomas Caddell finished in the top 10 with an eighth-place finish with a 13-over par (229), while Afnan Chowdhury finished 15th overall at 15-over par (231).

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