Western Carolina, Poston third at Furman Intercollegiate
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Western Carolina has a pair of golfers inside the individual top five after 36 of the scheduled 54 holes to stand third overall in the team standings at the 44th annual Furman Intercollegiate, which is being held at the par-72, 6,994-yard Furman University Golf Club.
Sophomore J.T. Poston slipped to third, while senior teammate Steven Smith is in fourth place entering Sunday’s final round.
WCU’s scoring four on Saturday all posted rounds of 3-over par or better, with Smith matching his career-low round of 3-under 69 as the Catamounts shot 289 for a two-day total of 576.
Paired with golfers from Virginia Tech and North Florida, WCU is among the final pairings off the first tee with the Catamounts’ first golfer going off at 1:10 pm in Sunday’s final round.
Poston carded four birdies against two bogeys on his Saturday round to shoot 2-under 70 for a two-day total of 6-under par 138. The Hickory, N.C., native made the turn off the front nine at even-par, scoring par on seven holes after an opening bogey on the par-4 No. 1 and a birdie on the par-5 sixth. Poston charted three birdies on his back nine with one bogey to finish his day at 2-under.
Smith advanced three spots in the individual standings with a 2-under par, 69, carding four birdies against three bogeys with an eagle on the par-5, 483-yard sixth hole. The Kirknewton, Scotland, native flirted with his career-low round most of the afternoon at 4-under par, but a bogey on the par-4 18th left him at 69, matching his previous career-best round recorded earlier this season at the Wolfpack Intercollegiate.
Junior Jack Walsh slipped into a tie for 51st for WCU, shooting 5-over 77 on Saturday for a two-day total of 150. Senior Kyle Wilson and junior Greg Bunner both trimmed strokes off their opening rounds, shooting 3-over par 75s on Saturday. Wilson has a two-day total of seven-over 151 to stand tied for 59th. Bunner advanced five spots in the standings to enter Sunday’s final round tied for 77th overall.
First-round leader Virginia Tech continues to pace the 21-team field, leading second-place North Florida by four strokes, 566-to-570. The Catamounts are third at 576, three strokes ahead of fourth-place Troy at 579. Winthrop and Iowa State are tied for the fifth position at 582 through two rounds.
Other team notables include Southern Conference foes Chattanooga in eighth at 584, just ahead of Samford in ninth at 586. Wofford is tied for 15th at 6-2 while league member and tournament host Furman (603) is in 17th place.
In the individual standings, first-round co-leader Trevor Cone now shares the lead with Iowa State’s Scott Fernandez at 7-under 137, just one stroke ahead of Poston in third and Smith in fourth, two strokes in arrears.
The final round is scheduled for 8 a.m. tee times on Sunday.
Chattanooga eighth at Furman Intercollegiate
GREENVILLE, S.C. – The Chattanooga Mocs men’s golf team is eighth after the second round at the Furman Intercollegiate. UTC shot 6-over par 294 Saturday at Furman Golf Course and is one shot behind seventh-place Purdue at 584.
For the second straight day Davis Bunn led the Mocs’ effort. He shot 72 (E) Saturday for a 36-hole total of minus-1 (143). He is tied for 10th heading into the final round.
Chris Robb bounced back from an opening-round 78 with a 73 (+1) Saturday. He is fourth on the squad at 151. Benni Weilguni is second to Bunn at 146 after a 74 in round two. Liam Johnston rounded out the counters with a 75 and is two behind Weilguni at 148.
Virginia Tech maintained its four-shot lead as it and No. 17 UNF each shot 286 (-2) Saturday. The Hokies are at 10-under 566, while the Osprey check in at minus-6 (570). It’s a two-way tie for the individual lead at 7-under (137) between Trevor Cone (VT) and Scott Fernandez (Iowa State). J.T. Poston (Western Carolina) is in third at minus-6 (138).
Chattanooga returns to the tee at noon for Sunday’s final 18. Alex Ratliff opens, followed by Robb (12:10), Johnston (12:20), Weilguni (12:30) and Bunn (12:40).
Furman tied for 16th at Furman Intercollegiate
GREENVILLE, S.C. – Trevor Cone fired a 3-under 69 on Saturday to remain in the lead and help Virginia Tech maintain its hold on first place after two rounds in the 44th annual Furman Intercollegiate at the par-72, 6,994-yard Furman University Golf Club.
Furman (+27) is in 17th place out of 21 teams through 36 holes after shooting a 10-over 298 in round two. Senior Anthony Aloi (-1) birdied his final two holes to pace the Paladins with a 71 and move into a share of 10th place. Matt Brown (+7) and John David Hunter (+9) each carded a 3-over 75, while Michael Borton (+8), playing as an individual, posted a 2-under 70.
Cone birdied four holes on the front nine and five total to improve to 7-under par through 36 holes. He is tied for the lead with Iowa State’s Scott Fernandez, who posted a four-under 68 on Saturday. Western Carolina’s J.T. Poston holds third place at 6-under while teammate Steven Smith is in fourth place at 5-under.
The Hokies (-10) carded a 2-under 286 to lead second place North Florida (-6) by four strokes entering the final round. Western Carolina (E) is in third place, Troy (+3) holds fourth place and Winthrop (+6) and Iowa State (+6) are tied for fifth.
Final round play is slated to begin at 8 a.m. on Sunday.