The Lee men’s golf team is tied for fourth place heading into the final 18 holes of the 54-hole Cougar Invitational presented by AFLAC on Tuesday.
Lander (S.C.) is the leader after the first two rounds on Monday. The Bearcats put together rounds of 277-287 – 564 (-4). At least five teams are in contention for top honors heading into the last round. North Alabama is two strokes back (566). Florida Tech is four strokes back (568). Lee and Columbus State are deadlocked for the fifth spot (569).
The Flames started slow with a 290 team score on the opening 18 but battled back with a 279 in Monday’s second round.
“I’m really proud of our second round,” said coach John Maupin. “The guys did a nice job to get us back in the hunt. We struggled to find our zone in that first round, but rebounded nicely. Tomorrow will be a great opportunity for us and a lot of fun."
Lander was paced by Conor Richards, who posted an impressive 66-73 – 139 (-5). He got plenty of help from his teammate Michal Pospisil who tallied a 71-69 – 140 (-4).
The Flames were paced by senior Shea Sylvester, 73-67 – 140 (-4). Sylvester is tied for second in the medalist hunt. Junior Corey Sheppard followed closely with a 73-69 – 142 (-2). Senior Adam Wright posted a 73-74 – 147 (+3) and senior teammate Matt Strube fired a 75-73 – 148 (+4). Matt Johnson rounded out the team scoring with a 76-73 – 149 (+6) while freshmen Dylan Lillard, playing in the individual competition, carded a 78-74 – 152 (+8).
The loaded field is hoping for cooler temperatures when they begin the shotgun start on Tuesday morning.