URBANA, Ill. – Using a balanced scoring day in which all five Redbird golfers shot round scores between 71 and 73, the Illinois State men's golf team heads into the final day of the NCAA Urbana Regional within striking distance of a top-five finish.
Tournament host and 14th-ranked Illinois continue to lead the field with a 36-hole score of 558, and the Illini are being chased by #2 Oklahoma State (561), #35 UNLV (561), #23 Texas Tech (566), Troy (567), #47 Marquette (572), #10 North Carolina (577), Illinois State (578), and Pacific (578). The remaining four schools in the tournament field include #26 Long Beach State (580), Wright State (583), #38 Houston (585), and NC State (590).
ISU will join Pacific and 10th-ranked North Carolina at 8:55 a.m. off the first tee for the third and final round of the Regional.
Starting on the first hole, the Redbirds were led by TJ Barger, who finished with an even-par 71, as he had two birdies and 14 pars on his time around the course, and he is tied for 30th with 18 holes to play in the tournament.
Recent ISU graduate Will Troy finished with a one-over 72 on the day, and had three birdies and 11 pars, and his eight pars for the tournament are tied for the eighth-most in the field through 36 holes and is tied for 52nd in the tournament field.
ISU's first-round leader, Alex McCulla, finished with a two-over 73 on the day, as he had four birdies and eight pars on his round, and he is also tied with the eighth-most birdies in the tournament field through the opening two rounds. He is the top Redbird in the standings through two rounds and is tied for 16th with 18 holes to play in the tournament.
Freshman Max Faucquez had an up-and-down day, as he opened with two bogeys and a double bogey over his first three holes; however, came back with four birdies and two pars over his next six holes and was at even par at the turn. He added another birdie and five pars in his back nine, as he finished with a two-over 73, while he is tied alongside Barger for the second-best Redbird score in the tournament.
Pietro Pontiggia also finished with a two-over 73 in the second round, as he had four birdies and nine pars over his time around Atkins Golf Club and is tied for 55th with 18 holes to play.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
