April 29, 2013
ORLANDO, Fla. – The University of Notre Dame men’s golf team fell slightly off the pace on day two of the BIG EAST Championship Monday, carding an eight-over par, 296 to claim solo fourth place on the Watson Course at Reunion Resort.
Freshman Cory Sciupider fired his second straight round of 72 to move into a tie for sixth place at even par (72-72-144). Sciupider birdied two of his final five holes to come in with a nine-hole score of 34 (-2).
Another player in the six-way tie at even par was senior Paul McNamara III. McNamara could not counteract three bogeys to one birdie at the back half of his round, shooting a two-over 74 to also check in at 144 for the event (70-74-144).
Junior Niall Platt, one day removed from a one-under 71 that placed him in the top 10 to start the BIG EAST Championship, gave a pair of shots back to the golf course with a round of 74 (+2) to close day two in a tie for 12th place (71-74-145). Platt rebounded from a slow start on his front nine to fire an even-par 36 on his final nine holes.
Freshman Zach Toste checked in as the fourth Irish player in the top 40, contributing a four-over par, 76 to claim a share of 36th place (75-76-151, +7).
Junior Andrew Lane logged three birdies during his second round, moving up two spots in the field to 57th place (83-81-164).
USF vaulted into the team lead with a second round score of 287 (-1). The Bulls (290-287-577) take a two-stroke advantage into the final round over Louisville, who carded the lowest score of the tournament with a six-under 282 on day two (297-282-579). St. John’s (298-283-581), Notre Dame (288-296-584) and Connecticut (294-295-589) round out the top five.
Cincinnati’s David Tepe posted his second straight round of 69 (69-69-138, -6) to build a two-shot lead over USF’s Chase Koepka (70-70-140, -4) in the individual competition. Ryan Gay (St. John’s) moved into solo third place at 141 (70-71, -3), while Georgetown’s Curtis Loop (77-66-143) and USF’s Trey Valentine (72-71-143) share fourth place at one-under par.
The final round of the BIG EAST Championship is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. Tuesday on the Watson Course at Reunion Resort. Notre Dame will be in the opening wave of teams, alongside Connecticut and DePaul, starting their rounds off the first tee.
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