The door the ISU men’s golf team had been knocking on was finally opened, and the Cyclones wasted no time bursting through.

After being in contention for a team title during its previous three tournaments, Iowa State was able to hold on and claim a seven-stroke victory Tuesday at the ASU Indian Classic in Jonesboro, Ark.

The tournament was sweet for senior Jeremy Lyons who, in his last regular season meet as a Cyclone, survived a three-hole playoff to claim top individual honors.

“This is great; it’s a huge boost of confidence,” head coach Jay Horton said. “We stumbled a little [coming in] and won by seven. Everyone stepped up and played great; this is a huge boost to their confidence.”

The tournament was shortened from 54 to 36 holes after rain forced tee times to be moved back during Monday’s first round.

The Cyclones recorded rounds of 287-293 to pull away from runners-up Nebraska and Arkansas-Little Rock. Iowa State entered the final round tied for the lead with four other teams and was able to slide through to victory.

“It feels great [to win],” Horton said. “They’re working hard and getting better and better and are headed in the right direction.”

Helping pace Iowa State again was Lyons, whose back-to-back rounds of 2-under-par 70 were good enough to give him the third win of his college career. At the end of regulation, Lyons was tied atop the leaderboard with Austin Hackett of Southwest Missouri State, forcing a sudden-death playoff, which Lyons won with a par on the third extra hole.

Even though he was playing for the win, Lyons said he never really felt the heat.

“There wasn’t a whole lot of pressure,” Lyons said. “I went out and played my game in the playoff. It was fun.”

The win was Lyons’ fourth consecutive top-10 finish and second straight meet in the top three.

“Jeremy is playing great,” Horton said of his team’s senior leader. “He was given the opportunity [to win] and stepped up and played great. It was nice to take all the hardwood home.”

Tyler Swanson finished second for Iowa State, carding rounds of 70-77 to finish in a tie for 17th. Curtis Foster recorded rounds of 73-76 to finish 30th, with Drew Dalziel (74-77) and Paul Huddle (81-70) tying for 44th place. Corey Schultz shot rounds of 88-75 playing as an individual.

The Indian Classic was the team’s final tuneup before competing in the Big 12 Championship in Hutchinson, Kan., April 26-27. Horton said the Cyclones’ win gives them the mindset that they can compete anywhere.

“This answers everything,” Horton said. “They know they can win a tournament. We’re used to challenging for titles.”