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SUGAR GROVE, Ill. – Illinois State men's golf standout Trent Wallace shot a 1-over-par 73 (37-36) in Friday's opening round of the NCAA Division I Championship at the par-72, 7,735-yard Rich Harvest Farms. He currently sits in a tie for 62nd place with multiple participants. Half of the field has not completed the first 18 holes because of a weather delay, and the opening round will resume at 6:45 a.m. Saturday morning.
The sophomore from Joliet, Illinois, started his day at the first hole and collected a pair of pars to start the round. However, he ran into the most trouble over holes 3 through 5, and was at 4-over-par after five because of a pair of bogeys on par 3's that were sandwiched in between a double bogey on the par-4 fourth.
But Wallace rallied over the final four holes of the front nine, as he finished strong with three birdies. He birdied the par-4 sixth, the par-5 seventh and the par-4 ninth while tallying a par on the par-4 eighth to finish the front with a 1-over-par 37.
Looking to carry his momentum into the back nine, Wallace bogeyed the par-4 10th and the par-5 11th, dropping him back to 3-over. The rest of the back, however, Wallace shot 2-under-par, which included birdies on the par-4 14th and the par-5 18th, to finish the final nine holes with an even-par 36.
"Trent (Wallace) did a great job handling the challenges of the golf course and the magnitude of the event today," head coach Ray Kralis said. "The golf course demands everything, and he showed he has a game worthy of being here. I was so proud of him for the way he battled back from adversity midway through the opening nine with a few birdies going into the turn, and he then stayed mentally tough after a couple miscues at 10 and 11 stalled his momentum."
Wallace finished with five birdies and eight pars in the round. Brandon Thornberry of Ole Miss leads the field with a 6-under-par 66, while Auburn's Jacob Solomon is in second place with a 5-under-par 67. Baylor is currently the top team with a 7-under-par, but the Bears have only completed holes eight through 10. Auburn is the only school in the top eight to have everyone finish, as the Tigers ended the day with a 6-under-par 282.
"While you can't win it on day one, you sure can lose it," Kralis said. "However, Trent made sure that didn't happen and played very solid golf on a course that doesn't give you much margin for error. This test demands that you commit to shots, accept results and stay patient all day. You have to keep the negative emotions out of the equation, which is much easier said than done, and you have to know how to handle it when the adrenaline is pumping as well. Trent answered the bell, and in the process, he is learning a great deal about himself and what he is capable of doing. He is in a great spot going into tomorrow."
Because of the weather delay, Wallace will now tee of in the final group of Saturday's second round at 2:47 p.m.
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