LA QUINTA, Calif. – Three Broncos ended the day among the top-7 on the individual leaderboard and Santa Clara men's golf matched the tournament-low with a second-round 276 to move into sole possession of third-place after 36 holes of the Geiberger Invitational.
Improving their afternoon score by 20 shots over the morning session, the Broncos climbed five spots on the team leaderboard, entering the clubhouse five-strokes behind leader Fresno State and two-shots back of host Loyola Marymount for second with a 572 total.
"All the guys played well in the afternoon," head coach Rob Miller said. "That's a darn good score."
Once again the Broncos were led by their top three players, who each finished in the top-10 after the first day of competition. Sophomore Matt McCarty shot a second-round 5-under 67 to move into a tie for second-place with a pair of golfers at 4-under 140. The trio is four shots behind Fresno State's Alex Lee.
"Matt's having another strong tournament. He's been really solid for us," Miller added.
Also in the hunt are junior Derek Ackerman and senior Hayden Shieh, who are tied for seventh-place at 2-under 142.
"Our three top guys played solid all day," Miller noted. "That group has been strong all season."
After scoring an 84 in the first round, freshman Jack Avrit turned things around and shot a career-low tying 4-under in the second round. Avrit opened the day going 14-over on his first 12 holes and played 6-under over the final 24. He finished at 8-over 152.
"I've seen some amazing turnarounds, but that was something," Miller said. "It was a weird day, but in the end it all worked out. Hopefully we'll play well again tomorrow and win."
Final round play on the 7,204-yard, par-72 PGA West Nicklaus Course will begin at 7:30 a.m. with tee times from holes No. 1 and 10. Live scoring is available at Golfstat.com.
Santa Clara 2nd Round Individual Results
| T2. | Matt McCarty | 73-67 = 140 (-4) |
| T7. | Derek Ackerman | 71-71 = 142 (-2) |
| T7. | Hayden Shieh | 72-70 = 142 (-2) |
| T37. | Zack Kaneshiro (I) | 72-77 = 149 (+5) |
| T51. | Jack Avrit | 84-68 = 152 (+8) |
| T55. | Michiel Eyre III (I) | 80-74 = 154 (+10) |
| T57. | Will DelBiaggio | 80-75 = 155 (+11) |
(I) Competing as an Individual
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