Panthers Lead Field At NCAA Golf Regionals
By Golf // May 8, 2012
Out in front
CONOVER, N.C. – Florida Tech shot a two-under-par 286 Monday to lead the field of 20 teams following the opening round of the NCAA Division II South/Southeast Regional at Rock Barn Golf & Spa in Conover, N.C.
The Panthers have a two-shot advantage over second-place Lynn, which sits at even. Barton is two-over, and Rollins and Georgia College & State are tied for fourth at three-over.
Christian Westhorpe and Ray Badenhorst of Florida Tech are in the top 10 after day one.
Westhorpe is tied for third at two-under and Badenhorst is tied for 10th, one shot behind Westhorpe.
Patrick Sheedy of the Panthers is one stroke behind Badenhorst at even. Florida Tech’s Colin Flabbi is trailing Sheedy by one, and Brandon Lau is at five-over.
J.P. Griffin Has One-Shot Lead
With a four-under 68, Georgia Southwestern’s J.P. Griffin has a one-shot lead over Georgia College & State’s Taylor Smith with 36 holes to play.
The Panthers are making their second consecutive tournament appearance and fourth in the program’s nine-year history as the region’s eighth seed.
Last spring, they earned a spot in the field as the 10th seed and came within three strokes of forcing a playoff. A win beyond the scheduled three rounds would have catapulted them into the NCAA National Championship.
The field of 20 teams and eight players will play one round in Conover through Wednesday. The top five teams and the top two student-athletes not with a team will advance to the finals next week at The Cardinal Club in Simpsonville, Ky.
Chris Saltmarsh coaches Florida Tech.
