GOLF | Gaels Among Leaders After Day 1 At NCAA Regionals
5/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
RANCHO SANTA FE, Calif. -- Freshmen Pavan Sagoo and Perry Cohen were among the top 13 individual finishers and led the Saint Mary's golf team to a fourth place finish after the first round of the NCAA San Diego Regional Thursday at The Farms Golf Club.
The Gaels concluded the first of three rounds with a 7-over par 295 and sit just three strokes behind third place Wichita State and six back of runner-up East Tennessee State. The University of Oklahoma captured an early lead with a 4-under par 284 in the partly cloudy, windy conditions.
Host San Diego and 27th ranked Virginia are tied for fifth place at 9-over par. Five nationally ranked teams, including 2nd ranked Arizona State, are among the bottom seven in the 13 team field.
The low five teams and the low individual not on one of those teams from each of the six regional events will advance to the NCAA finals, which will be hosted by the University of South Florida from May 29-June 3 at The Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Fla.
"I thought we played solid today," said SMC head coach Scott Hardy, who has led Saint Mary's to five NCAA regional appearances in 11 seasons. "We didn't make too many big mistakes. We stayed patient and played the golf course exactly as we intended. Coming here and being a little more comfortable with shot selection and knowing where the trouble spots are definitely helped. But, two of our guys haven't played this course before yesterday, so it was new to them."
Weather permitting, the teams return to the course for tomorrow's second round beginning at 8:20 a.m. The Gaels will tee off the first hole and are paired with golfers from San Diego and Virginia. Friday's forecast calls for temperatures in the low 60s with a 100 percent chance of rain and moderate winds.
Tournament officials indicated Thursday the tournament will continue as scheduled and play will resume as the weather allows throughout the day. The final round is scheduled for 8:20 a.m. Saturday.
"Tomorrow's weather will definitely make things interesting," said Hardy. "If there is a light rain and the greens don't puddle, we will play in the rain. That will cause some challenges with staying focused. It will be important to keep in mind that the conditions are affecting every player on the course."
Sagoo, a freshman from London, England, finished the day at even par and is tied for eighth place in the 75-golfer field. He totaled two birdies and two bogeys each on the front and back nine. He concluded his round with a birdie on the par 5 9th hole.
Cohen, playing the regional championships in his hometown after graduating last spring from La Jolla High School, is tied with seven other golfers for 13th place overall at 1-over par. His shot of the day was a chip shot on the 13th hole that landed within six inches of the hole and he tapped-in for par.
Junior Jonathan De Los Reyes sits in a 11-golfer tie for 21st place at 2-over par, while senior Tye Gabriel is tied for 42nd with a 4-over par 76. Freshman Connor Blick turned-in a 6-over par 78 and is tied for 55th place.
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