Mississippi State
Visit Knoxville Collegiate
Mateo Horno Fuels Bulldogs To Top 10 Finish At Season Opener
September 01, 2026 | Men's Golf
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Mississippi State men's golf was led by freshman Yago Horno Mateo and transfer Arth Sinha who put together top-15 performances during their debuts at the Visit Knoxville Collegiate.
As a team, the Bulldogs finished in a sixth-place tie after solid two days of golf. State also was one of five teams to place two players shoot 3-under or better for the tournament.
"I really like what I saw from the group this week," head coach Dusty Smith said. "Our intention was to run our process and compete hard. I felt like we did a really good job. The guys really stepped up in the final round today which is something we spoke about last night. "
Yago Horno Mateo led State and tied for fourth place at 8-under.
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Carded three rounds of par or better and concluded the event with a 2-under 70.
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Tied for fourth in the 96-player field in par-5 scoring at 4-under.
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This is the best debut by a State golfer since Drew Wilson finished tied for third at the 2024 Thomas Sharkey Individual Collegiate.
Arth Sinha ended the tournament in a tie for 13th.
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Opened the event with rounds of 2-under 70 and 1-under 70 before firing an even round of 70 to end the tournament.
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Tied for fourth in the 96-player field in par-5 scoring at 4-under.
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Carded the first eagle of the season for the Bulldogs on day one of the tournament.
"I can't say enough about the way Yago and Arth played this week," Smith added. "They were in control and did a great job focusing on the moment this week. Big time golf from those two guys."
Bryson Hughes fired his best career round at State with a 68 which enabled him to move up 14 spots on the leaderboard.
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Carded two rounds of par or better to conclude the tournament.
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Tied for 36th, which is the second best finish of his career in the Maroon and White.
Gavin Isbell played consistent golf for the Bulldogs.
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Had his best outing of the tournament in round three with a score of 1-under 70 with three birdies.
The Bulldogs will return to play from September 13-15 at the Canadian Collegiate Invitational located in Foot's Bay, Ontario.
Visit Knoxville Collegiate Final Results
1. Tennessee – 277, 282, 266 = 825 (-15)
2. Memphis – 281, 272, 276 = 829 (-11)
T3. Chattanooga – 277, 275, 279 = 831 (-9)
T3. North Carolina – 278, 279, 274 = 831 (-9)
5. Vanderbilt – 282, 274, 276 = 832 (-8)
T6. Mississippi State – 279, 280, 275 = 834 (-6)
T6. Georgia – 280, 273, 281 = 834 (-6)
T8. Toledo – 288, 271, 276 = 835 (-5)
T8. Missouri – 284, 275, 276 = 835 (-5)
10. Liberty – 284, 275, 280 = 839 (-1)
11. Charlotte – 277, 286, 277 = 840 (E)
12. South Carolina – 280, 278, 284 = 842 (+2)
13. Virginia Tech – 288, 277, 280 = 845 (+5)
14. NC State – 284, 281, 281 = 846 (+6)
15. Kentucky – 286, 286, 280 = 852 (+12)
T16. Indiana – 286, 285, 280 = 854 (+14)
T16. Louisville – 289, 281, 284 = 854 (+14)
Final State Player Results
T4. Yago Horno Mateo – 67, 68, 68 = 203 (-7)
T13. Arth Sinha – 68, 69, 70 = 207 (-3)
T36. Bryson Hughes – 73, 70, 68 = 211 (+1)
T52. Gavin Isbell – 72, 73, 69 = 214 (+4)
T79. Jackson Cook – 72, 73, 74 = 219 (+9)
Final State Individual Results
T84. Drew Wilson – 75, 73, 72 = 220 (+10)
For more information on the Bulldog golf program, follow on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram by searching "HailStateMG."
