FRANKLIN, Tenn. (Sept. 21, 2012) – Freshman Adrian Meronk (Wroclaw, Poland) led the ETSU men’s golf team in the opening round of the Mason Rudolph Championship on Friday afternoon, as the Buccaneer rookie shot an even-par 71 at the Vanderbilt Legends Club.

Meronk – who began the day by birdying two of the first three holes and totaled four on the front nine – finished in a tie for 15th among the 84-man field. In addition to Meronk, fellow freshman Chris Hickman (Centreville, Md.) was one of 11 golfers to card a 3-over-par 74 and moved into a tie for 41st after the first 18 holes of play on the par-71, 7,100-yard course.

Virginia’s Denny McCarthy holds a one-shot lead after firing a 4-under 67, while four golfers are tied for second after posting 68’s.

On the team side, No. 25 Oklahoma leads the 15-team field after registering a 4-under-par 280. The Sooners – who have four players in the top-15 after day one – hold a five-shot lead over second-place Ole Miss.

The Bucs are currently tied with No. 22 Virginia for 12th after both teams turned in scores of 12-over 296.

Second round play begins at 9 a.m. (Eastern) Saturday morning and fans can follow live scoring on GolfStat.com.  

For more information on Buccaneer men’s golf, visit ETSUBucs.com.