Appalachian State grabs lead at Hummingbird Intercollegiate
SAPPHIRE, N.C. – Appalachian State completed the second round of play in the Hummingbird Intercollegiate and vaulted into first place on Monday.
The Mountaineers carded a 283 Monday and sit three strokes ahead of second-place Belmont and four strokes ahead of Wofford and Tennessee Tech, who are tied for third.
John Michael Cole leads the way for the Mountaineers after two rounds of play. Cole fired a second-round 69 and is tied for fourth overall with a 142 score to span the first two rounds to sit even par.
Lee Mitchell is currently in a tie for ninth individually after shooting a 71 on Monday to bring his two-round total to 143 to sit 1-over par.
Casey Komline shot a second-round 73 for a 144 through two rounds, which is good for 2-over par. Komline is currently in a tie for 12th.
Eric Eberspeaker is in a tie for 27th after firing a 70 in the second round of play. That brings Eberspeaker's two-day score to 147, which is good for 5-over par.
Caleb Keck shot a second round 78 on Tuesday to sit 7-over par and card a 149 for the first two rounds of play. Keck is currently in a tie for 34th individually.
The third and final round of play will begin Tuesday morning.
Wofford jumps to tie for third at Hummingbird Intercollegiate
SAPPHIRE, N.C. – The Wofford College men’s golf team carded a 4-under-par 280 to climb into a tie for third place, four strokes behind leader Appalachian State, Monday in round two of the Hummingbird Intercollegiate from the Country Club of Sapphire Valley.
Wofford’s 4-under round marks the low round of the tournament through 36 holes. The Terriers started the second round in a tie for fifth place at 10-over par and are now 6-over par, tied for third place with Tennessee Tech.
For the Terriers, senior Brent McKenzie led the charge with a 2-under-par 69. McKenzie carded four birdies and two bogeys, including a birdie to close out the round on the par-4, 480-yard 18th hole. Coupled with his first-round 2-over 73, McKenzie is tied for fourth place at even par for the tournament, five shots back of leader J.T. Poston from host Western Carolina.
Freshman Andrew Novak climbed inside the top 10, posting a second-round score of 1-under-par 70 to move from 15th to a tie for ninth place. Novak had an up-and-down start to his round with three bogeys and two birdies on the front nine but settled in to card two birdies and no bogeys on the back for his 1-under round. Novak is 1-over par for the tournament.
Senior Chandler Brazeal rounded out the three Terriers to shoot under par in the second round. Brazeal was 2-over on the day with three bogeys and one birdie through 13 holes but rolled off three birdies on the final five holes to get under par. The 1-under round moved Brazeal 13 spots up the leaderboard from 29th into a tie for 16th place.
Junior Brannan Hudson carded three birdies en route to an ever-par round of 71. Hudson had two birdies and no bogeys on the front nine but was hurt by a double-bogey on the par-4, 475-yard 13th hole. Hudson then bogeyed No. 15 before birdying the par-3, 187-yard 16th for his even round. The junior climbed from 15th to a tie for 12th at 2-over par for the tournament.
Senior George Perkovich had a good day but was the only Terrier to shoot over par, carding a 1-over 72. The senior shot a 3-over-par 75 in Sunday’s first round and is tied for 27th place at 5-over for the tournament.
The final round of the Hummingbird Intercollegiate begins Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. The Terriers are scheduled to tee off in five separate groups from 10:20 to 11 a.m.
Samford fifth at Hummingbird Intercollegiate
SAPPHIRE, N.C. – The Samford University men’s golf team turned in its best team score of the 2013 Hummingbird Intercollegiate on Monday, but the Bulldogs dropped a position to fifth place in the team standings following 36 holes of play at the at the par-71, 6,767-yard Country Club of Sapphire Valley.
Samford carded a total team score of 286 Monday, a mark that was five strokes better than Sunday’s round of 291.
The Bulldogs trail first-place Appalachian State by just seven strokes and second-place Belmont by only four shots. Southern Conference rival Wofford and Samford’s former Ohio Valley Conference foe Tennessee Tech are currently tied for third place with identical 36-hole totals of 574.
Tuesday’s final round is scheduled for an 8:30 a.m. (CST) start, but is subject to an additional frost delay. Monday’s second round was delayed an hour due to frost on the valley floor, that on the heels of Sunday’s opening round being pushed back by 45 minutes.
Heading into the final round of action, Samford boasts four individual players ranked among the top 16 in the tournament.
True freshman Garrett Moores currently leads the Bulldogs with a two-day total of 1-over-par 143 (71-72), while sophomore Chris Clouser has carded a 36-hole mark of 144 (73-71). Moores is tied for ninth place in the individual standings. Clouser, who turned in a brilliant second-round score of 71 on Monday, jumped into a tie for 12th place in the tournament.
Junior Zach Hughes posted the Bulldogs’ best round of the tournament with a 1-under-par 70 on Monday. Samford’s talented native of Mobile, Ala., finished tied for fourth place in the 2012 Hummingbird Intercollegiate and used Thursday’s stellar performance to vault into a tie for 16th place in the individual standings.
The Bulldogs’ William Catanzaro, a senior from Gadsden, Ala., is also tied for 16th place. He fired a 2-over-par 73 in Monday’s second round and holds a 36-hole total of 145 on the week. Samford’s true freshman Austin Jackson rounded out the team’s scoring with two-day mark of 153 (79-74).
The Samford University men’s golf team will resume play in the 2013 Hummingbird Intercollegiate on Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. (CDT). Groups will tee off on both the front and back nines with front-nine tee times beginning at 8:30 a.m., with the back nine starting at 8:35 a.m.
Western Carolina tied for sixth at Hummingbird Intercollegiate
SAPPHIRE, N.C. – Western Carolina junior J.T. Poston paces the 56-golfer field at the 2013 Hummingbird Intercollegiate at The Country Club of Sapphire Valley through two rounds, following up his opening round 2-under-par 69 with a 3-under-par 68 on Monday for a four-stroke advantage.
WCU shot 289 as a team on Monday, slipping into a tie for sixth place with Gardner-Webb entering Tuesday’s final round. The host Catamounts are just six strokes outside of the top five and 13 off the pace.
Tuesday’s final round is scheduled for a 9:30 a.m. start, but is subject to an additional frost delay. Monday’s second round was delayed an hour due to frost on the valley floor, that on the heels of Sunday’s opening round being pushed back by 45 minutes.
Appalachian State leads first-round leader Belmont by three strokes as the Bruins shot 290 on Monday and trail the Mountaineers by three strokes, 573-570. The Mountaineers have three individuals among the top 15 after two rounds. Wofford tied the ninth-best team round in tournament history with a 4-under-par 280 to move into a two-way tie with Tennessee Tech for third at 574, with Samford rounding out the top five at 577.
WCU and Gardner-Webb are tied for sixth place with two-round scores of 583 with Evansville (598), Colgate (606) and Cardinal Stritch (617) rounding out the field.
After opening with two bogeys sandwiched around a birdie through his first three holes on Monday, Poston finished his second round with four more birdies and 11 pars. In front of a gathered gallery on the par-4 18th, Poston closed his second round with flair, sinking a 25-foot birdie putt to put the finishing touches on his 3-under-par round of 68.
All told, Poston has nine birdies through the first two days and ranks second in par-5 scoring (-4, 4.33).
For Western Carolina behind Poston, senior Jack Walsh and sophomore Tyler Lail sit amidst a seven-way tie for 20th place in the individual standings, both with 146s. Walsh shot 3-over 74 on Monday, while Lail again carded a round of 2-over-par 73.
Both redshirt junior Collin Witiak and senior Greg Bunner trimmed six strokes off their opening rounds, shooting 3-over-par 74s in the second round to sit tied for 44th overall to round out WCU’s scoring five.
Playing unattached as an individual, redshirt sophomore Alex Simmons carded his best round since joining the WCU roster with a 1-under-par 71 to move into a four-way tie for 12th at 144.
Also playing as an individual, freshman Evan Smith overcame three bogeys and one double-bogey with two birdies, shooting 3-over-par 74 to sit tied for 20th after 36 holes, while Matthew Turner was a stroke better on Monday, shooting 2-over-par 73.
Rounding out WCU’s roster was freshman Nont Panayanggool, who charted birdies on four of his first seven holes to sit at 3-under before a bogey and double-bogey left him even at the turn. On the front nine, the Thailand native had six pars with three bogeys to shoot 3-over 74.
Paired with golfers from Tennessee Tech and Samford, WCU’s scoring five is scheduled to tee off on the front nine beginning at 9:30 a.m. with tournament leader Poston slated for the 10:10 pairing. WCU’s four individuals hit the course on the back nine beginning at 10:35 a.m.
Elon moves to ninth at Wendy’s Kiawah Classic
KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. – The Elon men's golf team knocked two strokes off of Sunday's first-round score and moved up two spots on the leaderboard at the 2013 Wendy's Kiawah Classic on Monday. The Phoenix now sits ninth in the 18-team event with a mark of 598 (300-298) with one round remaining.
Jack Adkins continued to pace the maroon and gold, as he shot a second-round 73 and held in a tie for sixth individually. Adkins has a two-day score of 144 (71-73) and sits at even par.
Will DiIanni is five strokes back of Adkins with a 149 (75-74) and is tied for 24th out of the 96 participants.
After shooting a 74 on Monday, John Somers moved up to a tie for 54th with a tournament total of 154 (80-74). He is followed by Raphael Higuet, who is tied for 65th with a score of 156 (79-77), and Jeff Krieger, who has a 157 (75-82) and is tied for 69th.
Marquette's Nick Nelson is -7 with a 137 (70-67) to hold the individual lead with one round to play.
No. 28 South Carolina is pacing the field. The Gamecocks hold the lead with a mark of 569 (283-286). The remainder of the top five includes Marquette (588), Presbyterian (589), No. 44 Missouri (592) and No. 51 Winthrop (593).
Elon does lead No. 54 Minnesota, which is 12th with a 606.
Georgia Southern fifth at Eagle/Osprey Collegiate
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Georgia Southern carded a 297 in each of the first two rounds and stands in fifth place after the first day of the Eagle/Osprey Intercollegiate at the Deerwood Country Club on Monday.
It was chilly, rainy and very windy, with gusts over 30 miles per hour as the 15 teams played 36 tough holes Monday with only three holes averaging under par.
Vanderbilt (+7) leads the tournament, and Southeastern Louisiana (+14) is second. Mercer is third (+16), followed by Florida Gulf Coast (+17), Georgia Southern (+18) and Tulsa (+19), as second place through sixth is separated by just five strokes.
Mercer's Trey Rule shot a 67, tied with Hunter Stewart of Vanderbilt for the lowest score in the first round, and posted a 75 in the second to lead the individual standings at 2-under.
Georgia Southern's Scott Wolfes posted a 70 in the second round and is even par for the tournament and alone in sixth place. Teammates Matthew Mierzejewski and Henry Mabbett, both of whom are playing as individuals, are tied for 10th at 4-over. Mierzejewski shot 75-73=148, while Mabbett went 73-75=148.
Charlie Martin is tied for 27th (+6) after shooting 74-76=150, and Hayden Anderson is one shot behind him after posting 74-77=151. Christian Humber (74-78=152) and Will Evans (78-74=152) are both 8-over, and Sam Towler, who is also playing as an individual, shot 78-78=156 (+12).
The tournament concludes Tuesday, and Christian Humber will lead the GSU counters off hole 1 at 8:15 a.m. Towler will tee off in the first group of individuals at 7:39 a.m., while Mabbett and Mierzejewski will play in the same group and go off at 7:57 a.m.
Furman 12th at Eagle/Osprey Collegiate
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Sophomore Wehman Hopke fired an opening-round 73 and shot a 76 in the day’s second round to lead Furman on Monday in the opening day of the Eagle/Osprey Intercollegiate at the par-72, 7,223-yard Deerwood Country Club.
Hopke, who enters Tuesday’s final round tied for 16th place, finished the day seven strokes back of leader Trey Rule of Mercer, who carded a 67 in Monday’s opening round and a 75 in the afternoon round.
Sophomore Preston Cole (+9) led the Paladins with a 75 in the day’s second round to enter Tuesday’s final round tied for 43rd. Sophomore Preston Heyward (+12) is tied for 61st after carding a 79 and 77 in Monday’s rounds, while rookie Bryce Howell (+13) notched a 79 and 78 to finish the day tied for 70th. Junior Michael Borton shot a 77 and 81 to enter the final round tied for 75th.
Vanderbilt (+7) holds a seven-stroke lead with a 7-over 583 following Monday’s play. Southeastern Louisiana is in second place at 14-over par, and Mercer is third at 16-over entering Tuesday’s final round.
The Paladins will tee off beginning at 8:06 a.m. on Tuesday from hole No. 10 in the tournament’s final round.