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Men's Golf NCAA Tournament Update: Day 2
NCAA Men's Golf Update

	Matt Schovee, SMU

May 18, 2012

IRVING, Texas - East Carolina and SMU will enter the final round of NCAA Men's Golf Regional play in second place after strong showings during Friday's second round. UAB currently is tied for third and Memphis is in fourth place through two rounds.

All seven C-USA teams are among the top eight teams in their respective regions. The top five teams and the top individual not from those teams advance to the NCAA Championships on May 29-June 3 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. SMU's Matt Schovee continues to lead the Greensboro Regional after firing a two-under, 70, and leads by two strokes.

Greensboro Regional Leaderboard - SMU/Tulsa

Bowling Green Regional Leaderboard - Memphis

Athens Regional Leaderboard - East Carolina/Houston

Stanford Regional Leaderboard - UAB/UCF

Athens Regional Recaps

East Carolina:

The sixth-seeded East Carolina shot a second round 3-under 281 to move into second-place at the NCAA Athens Regional, being played at the University of Georgia Golf Course. Individually, ECU sophomore Ryan Eibner shot a 3-under 68 to move into third-place at 7-under for the tournament, two strokes off the lead.

The Pirates are 11-under through two rounds, trailing No. 4 Alabama (-23) by 12 strokes for the overall lead. Tenth-ranked North Florida is in third-place at 6-under followed by No. 24 Georgia (E) in fourth and No. 16 New Mexico (+7) in fifth. The top five teams from the regional advance to the finals in Pacific Palisades, Calif., beginning May 29.

The Pirates' 281 was tied with Long Beach State for the second-lowest round of the day with only top-seeded Alabama posting a better second round score, 276. Those were the only three teams among the 13-team field to shoot under-par.

Houston:

Overcoming a slow start, Houston used a late second round surge to put itself in contention Friday for a top-five finish during the NCAA Athens Regional.

The top five teams and the top individual not from those teams advance to the NCAA Championships on May 29-June 3 at Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, Calif. Houston is tied for seventh place, two spots outside of an NCAA Championship berth.

Bowling Green Region Recap

Memphis:

Memphis posted a 287 (-1) to break out of a four-way tie and take sole possession of fourth place through two rounds at the NCAA Bowling Green Regional. Jonathan Fly is in a tie for fifth place with a 141 (-3) 36-hole total, while Will Pearson carded the lowest score in the second round with a 3-under-par 69.

The Tigers started on No. 10 Friday morning and were 7-under-par through the first nine holes of the second round. The front nine proved more difficult for Memphis, but the Tigers regrouped and finished strong with a 287 (1-) team score on day two.

Greensboro Regional Recaps

SMU:

SMU's Matt Schovee continued his solid play on day two of the NCAA East Regional, shooting a 2-under, 69, to remain atop the leaderboard. After an even par first round, SMU carded a 6-over, 294, yet remains in second, six shots above the current cutline for the NCAA Championship.

With another four birdies to add to his tournament total of 10, second at the regional, Schovee sustained his lead individual at 7-under par. With birdies on No. 2 and 5, the senior fell back to even as bogeys on No. 11 and 13, but closed out the round with birdies on No. 15 and 18 to get back to 2-under for the round.

Tulsa:

After two rounds at the NCAA Greensboro Regional, Tulsa sits in seventh place with a score of 590 and is just two strokes off fifth-place, which is needed following tomorrow's third round to qualify for the NCAA Championship Finals. The low five teams and the low individual not on those teams will advance to the NCAA championship finals after Saturday's 18 holes.

Friday, Tulsa carded a round of 297 at the par-72 Grandover Resort East Course and fell from third to seventh place. Liberty continues to lead the 14-team field with a 576 total, while SMU is second at 582. There are just six strokes that separate teams three through nine after the first 36 holes.

Tulsa sophomore John Young Kim carded a score of 75 today after opening with a score 69 on Thursday. Kim is in seventh place with an even-par score 144.

Stanford Regional Recaps:

UAB:

Sophomore Thomas Sutton carded a four-under par 66 to lead UAB to a six-under par 274 during the second round of the 2012 NCAA Regionals, held at the Stanford Golf Course. As a result of another solid round, the Blazers will enter the third and final 18 holes in a tie for third overall with an eight-under par 552 (278-274).

Friday's second round score matched the third-best 18-hole team score in program history, set at the 2008 NCAA East Regional second round. Moreover, the team's 36-hole mark of 552 is the second-lowest tally in UAB lore, trailing only the 545 set during the first two rounds of the 2007 Jerry Pate National Intercollegiate.

UCF:

No. 22 UCF will enter the final round of the NCAA Regionals at the Stanford Golf Course in eighth after recording a 279 (-1) Friday. The top five teams at the regional will advance to the NCAA Championship later this month.

The Knights, at 3-under 557, are just four shots behind fifth-place Tennessee (553, -7). Second-ranked Cal leads the regional at 546 (-14), followed by No. 14 San Diego State (547, -13). No. 8 Stanford, the regional host, is tied for third with UAB at 8-under 552.

During the second round, UCF was led by Jose Joia. The sophomore carded a 3-under 67 and is now tied for eighth at 136 (-4). He was tied for 17th after 18 holes.