WILLIAMS' 71 LEADS MEN'S GOLF IN OPENING ROUND OF NCAA NORMAN REGIONAL
5/17/2012
Ryan Williams posted the lowest score for the Hornets with a 71 in the first round of the NCAA regional.
NORMAN, Okla. — Led by Ryan Williams 1-under par 71, the Sacramento State men's golf team is in ninth place following the first day of the NCAA Norman Regional on Thursday at the Jimmy Austin OU Golf Club.
The Hornets shot 292 as a team and are 13 strokes off the pace set by No. 1 Texas and No. 23 Florida State. Behind a strong finish, Illinois jumped into third place with a team score of 284 while Saint Mary's and Washington are tied for fourth at 286. The top five teams at the conclusion of the tournament will advance to the NCAA Championships.
Sacramento State began its round on the the 10th hole and made the turn at 3-over. Cameron Rappleye had the best start to the day, with a pair of birdies and bogeys on his first nine holes. Each of the other four golfers in the lineup stood at 1-over at the midway point.
"I thought we got off to a good start but lost some strokes in the middle of the round," Sacramento State men's coach Christopher Hall said. "The good news is that we gave ourselves a chance to advance (to nationals)."
On the front side of the course, Williams began with bogeys on the par-4 first and the par-3 second. From that point, the junior played his final seven holes at 4-under with birdies on Nos. 3, 5, 7 and 9.
Jake Johnson shot 73 to rank second on the team. The senior had four birdies, 10 pars, three bogeys and a double bogey.
Grant Rappleye and Jordan Weir each shot 74 to contribute to the team total. Rappleye stood at 1-under through his first seven holes but double bogeyed No. 17 to make the turn at 1-over. He eventually jumped to 3-over with three holes to play but birdied the par-5 8th.
Weir finished his round with three birdies, 10 pars and five bogeys.
After a strong start to his round, Cameron Rappleye finished with a 77. Rappleye birdied Nos. 11 and 13 early on but played his final nine holes at 5-over. Overall, he had two birdies, 10 pars, five bogeys and a double bogey.
Texas' Jordan Spieth, who is the top-ranked player in Div. I, holds a 1-stroke lead after shooting 66. Brooks Koepka of Florida State is second following a round of 67.
The Hornets will be paired with Arizona and Georgia Tech for the second round on Friday.
NCAA NORMAN REGIONAL
Jimmy Austin OU Golf Club
Par 72 • 7351 Yards
TEAM SCORES
T1. #1 Texas 279
T1. #23 Florida State 279
3. Illinois 284
T4. Saint Mary's 286
T4. #13 Washington 286
6. Oklahoma 287
7. Arizona 289
8. #12 Georgia Tech 290 9. Sacramento State 292
10. South Carolina 294
11. IUPUI 297
12. San Diego 303
13. Middle Tennessee State 304
14. Loyola-Chicago 307
INDIVIDUAL TOP FIVE
1. #1 Jordan Spieth, TEX, 66
2. #15 Brooks Koepka, FSU, 67
T3. Ben Geyer, SMC, 68
T3. #89 Thomas Pieters, ILL, 68
T5. Daniel Berger, FSU, 69
T5. Wesley Bryan, SC, 69
T5. #18 Luke Guthrie, ILL, 69
T5. #8 Cheng-Tsun Pan, WASH, 69
T5. #21 James White, GT, 69
