Kent State One Stroke Off The Lead At Jack Nicklaus Invitational
Golden Flashes tied for second after second round 284
DUBLIN, Ohio — Kent State more than held its own against one of the deepest fields in college golf this fall posting a 36-hole score of 575 (291-284) after the first two rounds of play at the Jack Nicklaus Invitational held at legendary Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio. With the final 18 holes remaining tomorrow, the Golden Flashes are just one shot off the lead and tied for second with No. 3 Texas.
Following a first round 291 that placed the team in fourth place and five shots back of leader Ohio State (286-288=574), Kent State recorded the second lowest total in the first two rounds amongst the 12-team field with the four-under 284 to close the gap.
Sophomore Taylor Pendrith (Richmond Hill, Ontario), who made four straight birdies on Nos. 9-12, paced the afternoon round with a three-under 69. Pendrith made seven birdies for the round and grouped with a first round 75 finds himself in a tie for ninth place along with senior Mackenzie Hughes (Dundas, Ontario) and two others that also sit at even par 144.
Hughes was in his grove in the first round making birdie on four of his first seven holes after starting the day on No. 6. He finished the opening round with a team best 71 before posting a 73 in the afternoon.
With a 36-hole total of 145 (73-72), junior Kevin Miller (Dover, Ohio) is tied for 13th and only one stroke back of the Pendrith and Hughes group. Miller, who started both rounds on No. 7 helped finish off the second round team score by making birdie on three of his final four holes. He wasn't the only Kent State golfer with a strong finish however as freshman Nick Scott (Union, Ohio) rolled home three straight birdies on Nos. 5-6-7 in the second round which he began on hole No. 9 with another birdie. Making his first appearance in the Kent State line-up after playing as an individual last time out, Scott's second round 70 was the second lowest of day for the Golden Flashes and a nice recovery after carding a 79 in the morning. He heads into the final round tied for 27th with a 149.
Sophomore Kyle Kmiecik (Avon, Ohio) shot a two round total of 149 (72-77) as well making eight birdies in 36 holes.
Final round tee times for Kent State on Tuesday start at 9:30 am off No. 1.
Follow the team on Twitter @KentStGolf.
Kent State R1-R2 = Total
T9 Mackenzie Hughes 71-73 = 144
T9 Taylor Pendrith 75-69 = 144
T13 Kevin Miller 73-72 = 145
T27 Kyle Kmiecik 72-77 = 149
T27 Nick Scott 79-70 = 149
Rk team R1-R2 = Total
1 Ohio State 286-288 = 574
T2 30 Kent State 291-284 = 575
T2 3 Texas 299-276 = 575
4 UCLA 289-297 = 586
T5 35 LSU 299-289 = 588
T5 23 Illinois 288-300 = 588
7 4 Arkansas 299-291 = 590
8 31 TCU 298-299 = 597
9 Texas Tech 303-296 = 599
10 5 Oklahoma State 296-304 = 600
11 48 Purdue 305-297 = 602
12 North Carolina 301-305 = 606
* rankings by golfstat.com
