GSU Golf in Fourth After Opening Day of Southeast Regional

Logan Blondell tied for fifth at 1-under 69.

 

ALPHARETTA, Ga. ? Georgia Southern climbed the leaderboard and sits nestled with the top three teams after day one of the NCAA Southeast Regional. Led by Logan Blondell’s 1-under par 69, the Eagles combined for an aggregated 288 and stand in fourth place heading into the second round. Only one stroke out of third, GS will return to the Capital City Golf Club’s Crabapple Course, a par 70, 7,182 yard championship-style course on Friday for round two.

 

No. 1 seeded Oklahoma State moved its way into first place with a 2-over 282, a one shot edge over second-place Clemson (283). Host institution Georgia Tech holds third with a 287, besting the fourth-place Eagles by one. Brigham Young rounds out the top five at 9-over 289.

 

“I was proud of the way the team hung in there,” said head coach Larry Mays. “We started off slow on the back nine, which is the tougher part of the course, but hung tough through the hard stretch and played well. Now we just have to go back out for two more rounds and continue our strong play.”

 

Teeing off on the back nine, four of the five Eagles bogeyed the opening hole, but the team finished strong on the back nine, capitalizing on key opportunities to climb the leaderboard.

 

One of only nine competitors to finish under par on the day, junior Blondell (Lakeland, Fla.) led the charge for the team carding a 1-under 69. The junior sealed his 1-under tally with a bogey-free back nine that included three birdies. After taking the turn at 2-over, Blondell moved to even par quickly launching two birdies over the first three holes on the back nine. A birdie on seven finalized the round as Blondell currently sits in a five-way tie for fifth place.

 

Two seniors stand tied for 24th after the opening round with 2-over par 72s. Matt Deal (Statesboro, Ga.) sealed his final scorecard on the front nine using three bogeys and a birdie to take the turn at 2-over. Deal proceeded to par the back nine and keep his slate clean.

 

Meanwhile, fellow classmate Spence Fulford (Rocky Mount, N.C.) dispersed 1-over front and back nines for a 2-over finish. Fulford erased a bogey on hole 10 with a birdie on 12, but moved back to 1-over with a bogey on 14. A double-bogey on hole one hindered the senior who finished strong with a birdie on eight.

 

Rounding out the traveling squad for Georgia Southern, Ryan Zabroske (Alpharetta, Ga.) and Florian Sander (Bregenz, Austria) both turned in matching 75s to claim part of 39th place. Zabroske, the only Eagle to par the opening hole, strung together a trio of pars before four consecutive bogeys forced the Eagle to own a 4-over front nine. The senior highlighted his round with a birdie on hole four. 

 

Freshman Sander carded two birdies over 18 holes, but could not rebound from a slow start on both the front and back. Sander bogeyed two of the first three holes and followed a birdie on 17 with a bogey for a 2-over front nine. The freshman finished the round with a 3-over back nine for his final 75.

 

“We had three solid scores for the first round,” stated Mays. “Logan [Blondell] had a great back nine, which was great to see, and Matt [Deal] was even on the back as well. Both showed great rounds and helped us to a solid start. Now we have to maintain the level of play.”

 

The Eagles return to the course on Friday with a 7:50 a.m. tee time and will be paired with Brigham Young and Arizona State. The trio will tee off on the front nine. Live scoring will be available at www.golfstat.com.

 

 

 

 

Ferrell Leads Furman On Opening Day Of NCAA Southeast Regional

 

Alpharetta, Ga. -- Senior Garland Ferrell fired an opening round 69 to grab a share of fifth place and help Furman into a tie for seventh place after one round of the NCAA Southeast Regional at the Capital City Club’s par-70, 7,182-yard Crabapple Course on Thursday.

 

The Paladins, seeded eighth in the 13-team field, raced out to as much as a five-stroke lead on the front nine, but settled for a 292 as the team combined to record 12 bogeys and two double bogeys over the final five holes which include a 220-yard par 3 and 490-yard par 4.

 

“We did well today but we need to do a better job of finishing,” said Furman head coach Todd Satterfield.

 

Ferrell fashioned his impressive opening round on the strength of his accurate putting.  The Greenville, S.C., native notched four birdies, highlighted by an 18-foot birdie putt at No. 2, 20-footer at No. 8 and 15-foot birdie at No. 16.

 

Fellow senior Daniel Bowden recovered from a bogey on the opening hole to notch three birdies and card a one-over par 71.  Senior Jack Ulrich posted a five-over 75 and sophomore Anthony Aloi birdied No. 18 to finish at 77 and round out Furman’s four counting scores on Thursday.

 

Top-ranked Oklahoma State took the lead after 18 holes shooting a two-over 282.  Clemson (283) holds second place just one stroke behind the Cowboys while host Georgia Tech (287) is five strokes back and in third place.

 

Georgia Tech’s John Tyler Griffin, Mississippi’s Jonathan Randolph, Brigham Young’s Robbie Fillmore and Oklahoma State’s Peter Uihlein each shot two-under 68 to forge a four-way tie for the individual lead.  Ferrell heads a group of five other golfers just one stroke back in a tie for fifth.

 

The top five teams from the regional and the low individual not a member of those teams will advance to the NCAA Championship on June 1-6, at The Honors Course in Chattanooga, Tenn.

 

Second round play has been moved from 8 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. on Friday due to the threat of inclement weather.  The Paladins will tee-off from No. 10 beginning at 7:30.  Saturday’s final round is also set to tee-off at 7:30 a.m.

 

Fans can follow live scoring from the Crabapple Course and each of the other five 54-hole NCAA Regionals by logging onto www.golfstatresults.com.

 

T7      Furman          292

T5      Garland Ferrell 69

T13     Daniel Bowden   71

T39     Jack Ulrich             75

T55     Anthony Aloi            77

T69     Austin Reeves           78

 

 

 

 

Chattanooga Men’s Golf Tied for 10th after 18 Holes

Mocs are nine shots out of coveted top 5 position

 

SANTEE, Calif. --- The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s golf team is tied for 10th after 18 holes at the NCAA Southwest Regional at Carlton Oaks Golf Club.  Chattanooga shot 304 to open regional play and is nine shots out fifth-place behind UCF at 295.

 

The top five teams and the low individual from a non-advancing team qualify for the championship at The Honors Course June 1-6.  While the Mocs are nine shots out of fifth, they are just 10 behind a quartet in first place.

 

No. 1 Oregon, No. 12 UNLV, No. 24 Tennessee and Cal are tied for the lead at 294.  The six-over par total place the foursome one shot ahead of UCF in fifth.  Thirteen shots separate the 13 teams in the field which makes for an interesting remaining 36 holes.

 

Sophomore Stephan Jaeger shot the Mocs’ low round with a two-over par 74.  The Southern Conference Golfer of the Year, Jaeger is tied for 18th one shot ahead of true freshman Steven Fox with a 75. 

 

Senior Fredrik Qvicker added a 76 (+1) including some fireworks coming in.  After a birdie on 16 and a narrowly missed birdie putt on 17, Qvicker’s tee shot on 18 blew into the hazard.  He hit a 5-wood from hard dirt ground to the back of the green.  His long par putt was tantalizing close to falling before he tapped in for bogey.

 

Senior Derek Rende had a 79 (+7) for his opening round, while fellow senior J.T. Clendenin had the drop score with an 82 (+10).

 

“It was not the round we hoped to post starting out,” said head coach Mark Guhne.  “But it was not a throw away either.  We are in contention, but have to tighten up in some places and take advantage of opportunities in others.”

 

UNLV’s Eddie Olson leads individually with a four-under par 68.  New Mexico State’s Timothy Madigan is one shot back in second at 69 (-3), while Cal’s Michael Weaver is alone in third with a 70 (-2).

 

Chattanooga tees off Hole No. 10 at 8:50 a.m., on Friday paired with San Diego State and Oral Roberts.  Clendenin leads off followed by Rende, Qvicker, Fox and Jaeger.

 

LEADERBOARD

T1) No. 1 Oregon	294	294 (+6)
T1) Cal	294	294 (+6)
T1) No. 24 Tennessee	294	294 (+6)
T1) No. 12 UNLV	294	294 (+6)
5) UCF	295	295 (+7)
6) New Mexico State	296	296 (+8)
7) Missouri	299	299 (+11)
T8) No. 13 Augusta State	303	303 (+15)
T8) UC Irvine	303	303 (+15)
T10) Chattanooga	304	304 (+16)
T10) San Diego State	304	304 (+16)
T10) Oral Roberts	304	304 (+16)
13) Arizona	307	307 (+19)
Mocs:
T18) Stephan Jaeger	74	74 (+2)
T25) Steven Fox	75	75 (+3)
T40) Fredrik Qvicker	76	76 (+4)
T66) Derek Rende	79	79 (+7)
T69) J.T. Clendenin	82	82 (+10)

 

 

 

Medeiros and Joye Complete Day One at NCAA Regional Tournament

 

ATLANTA, Ga. ? Wofford men’s golfers Garrett Medeiros and Mark Joye completed the first round of competition at the NCAA Southeast Regional on Thursday. The Regional is hosted by Georgia Tech University at the par-70, 7,182 yard Crabapple Course at the Capital City Club in Atlanta, Ga.

 

Senior Medeiros finished with a score of two over par 72, helped by a one-under score on the front nine. The senior from Rumford, R.I. is currently tied for 24th individually and is only four strokes behind the four players leading the field. Freshman Joye shot a first round 78.

 

In the team competition, Oklahoma State leads Clemson by one stroke after the opening round. The Cowboys, the No. 1 seed in the regional, shot a 2-over par 282. Clemson (283, +3) is one shot back, followed by regional host and ACC champion Georgia Tech (287, +7), Georgia Southern (288, +8) and Brigham Young (289, +9). Arizona State, the regional’s No. 2 seed, is in sixth place (290, +10).

 

Play continues Friday with round two of the three-round tournament. Players will tee off beginning at 7:50 on the Crabapple Course. Joye will tee off at 9:20 and Medeiros at 9:40, both from hole 10.