Gamecocks sit in fifth place at NCAA Tournament
Courtesy: NCAA/USC Athletics
BRYAN, Texas — South Carolina sits in fifth place after shooting a 293 (+5) in the opening round of the 2018 NCAA Bryan Regional. Junior Scott Stevens paced the Gamecocks with a 1-under 71 on Monday at Traditions Club.
The Chattanooga, Tenn., native sits T-12th individually after leading the team with four birdies. He made the turn at 1-under (35) after a bogey free front nine. Stevens was at 2-under before hitting a ball into the hazard on 13. He bounced back nicely from a triple bogey on the hole, with back-to-back birdies on 14 and 15 to get back to red numbers.
Senior team captain Keenan Huskey had quite the start to his round with an ace on the par-3 second hole. The Greenville, S.C., native flushed an 8-iron and the ball landed just past the ridge at the top of the greenside bunker, rolling into the bottom of the cup. Like Stevens, Huskey made the turn at 1-under. An errant tee shot on the par-5 15th resulted in a triple bogey. He got a stroke back on 17 with a nice birdie on 17, finishing the day T-22nd at 1-over par (73).
Junior Will Miles is T-37th at 2-over. He shot 35 (-1) on the front and 39 (+3) coming into the clubhouse. He was the only player in the field to eagle the par-5 15th on the back nine. Senior Ben Dietrich was the final counting score in the lineup as he carded a 3-over 75. The Bluffton, S.C., native was 2-under through seven holes, but had back-to-back bogeys on eight and nine as he made the turn at even par. He then shot 39 (+3) on the backside and sits T-43rd at 3-over. Freshman Andrew Spiegler shot 76 (+4) and is T-49th. He is making his NCAA debut for the Gamecocks this week.
Top-seeded Texas A&M, the host school, shot 9-under (279) at their home course Monday, good for a a three-shot lead over second-seeded Baylor. Clemson was the only other team in the field to shoot under par as they carded a 283 (-5). UCLA is in fourth place after an even par 288.
Chandler Phillips (Texas A&M), Brandon Smith (Texas A&M) and Cooper Dosey (Baylor) are all tied for the individual lead after opening round 68s (-4). Phillips is the eighth ranked player in the country, and he led the field with seven birdies Monday.
Carolina will be paired with Ole Miss and UCLA for the second round on Tuesday morning. Andrew Spiegler will lead things off for the Gamecocks at 9 a.m. ET on hole 10.
