BATH, Mich. – The Fighting Illini men’s golf team held steady in second place with a 6-under 278 during Round 2 of the NCAA Bath Regional at Eagle Eye Golf Club on Wednesday.
The second-round effort gives the Illini a 36-hole team score of 550 (-18) and leaves the regional’s top-seeded program 10 shots behind Georgia in the race for the team title. Overall, the Illini are well positioned at 14 shots clear of a sixth-place tie between Kansas State and Florida with the top five teams earning NCAA Championship berths following Wednesday’s finale. Oregon (-15), Texas (-12) and host Michigan State (-11) round out the top five after two rounds.
Fifth-year seniors Matthis Besard and Tommy Kuhl each moved up the individual leaderboard in Round 2. Besard followed his opening 67 with a 2-under 69 to move up one spot into a tie for fourth at 136 (-6), where he sits three shots behind leader Ben Van Wyk of Georgia. Kuhl climbed six spots into tie for sixth, overcoming a 2-over start through his first six holes to match Besard’s 69 (-2). The Morton, Ill., native is one stroke behind his classmate with a two-round total of 137 (-5).
Sophomore Jackson Buchanan also carded a 69 (-2), shaving five strokes off his Round 1 effort to ascend 22 spots up the leaderboard into a tie for 37th.
The Illini were the only team to survive Tuesday without an over-par score in its five-player lineup, with fifth-year senior Adrien Dumont de Chassart and junior Piercen Hunt each carding rounds of even-par 71 to round out the scoring for the Orange and Blue. Dumont de Chassart the final round tied for 11th at 4-under, while Hunt is tied for 27th at 1-under.
Round 3 tees off Wednesday morning beginning at 8 a.m. ET. The Illini, paired with the Georgia and Oregon, will again be among the first to tee off on No. 1. Live scoring is available throughout the tournament at Golfstat.com.
FOLLOW THE #ILLINI
For more Fighting Illini men’s golf news, stay tuned to FightingIllini.com and follow @IlliniMGolf on social media: Twitter | Instagram | Facebook.