ALPHARETTA, Ga. (Oct. 19, 2013) – The ETSU men’s golf team wrapped up second round play at the U.S. Collegiate Championship, and junior Buccaneer golfer Rhys Pugh (Pontypridd, Wales) continued with his strong play after carding a 1-under-par 71 on Saturday from The Golf Club of Georgia – Lakeside Course.

Pugh remained in the hunt for the individual title as the Welshman stayed in a tie for third after 36-holes of competition in the prestigious tournament. The Buccaneer standout is one of six golfers at 4-under-par and sits five shots back from the leader. After playing the front nine at 3-under on Friday, Pugh shot 1-over thru the first nine holes Saturday, but he quickly moved back into contention after recording birdies on No. 10 and 18 to end the day with a 71.

Georgia Tech’s Ollie Schniederjans began the morning in a tie for first, and after firing a 3-under 69, the Yellow Jacket junior golfer holds a four-shot advantage over Oklahoma State’s Jordan Niebrugge. Schniederjans is 9-under-par 135 for the tournament.

Meanwhile, Georgia Tech lost its post atop the team leaderboard as No. 7 Oklahoma State leaped over the third-ranked Yellow Jackets. The Cowboys registered a 7-under 281 on Saturday and are one-stroke ahead of tournament host, Georgia Tech, at 11-under 565. UCLA, who is currently ranked No. 15 in the Golfweek rankings, sits third at 3-under 573.

The Bucs shaved four strokes off their opening round score as No. 42 ETSU shot a 2-over 290 on Saturday and stands in 12th in the 15-team field. Sophomore Adrian Meronk (Wroclaw, Poland) began the day on a positive note as he posted three birdies on the front, but played the back nine at 3-over to finish with a 72. Meronk was 2-under thru 16, but suffered a triple-bogey on the par-3 17th, moving him 1-over for the round. However, Meronk bounced back with a birdie on No. 18 to end his round. Meronk wasn’t the only Buccaneer who also had difficulties on No. 17 as freshman Mateusz Gradecki (Oborniki Śląskie, Poland) – who parred every hole prior – ended with a double-bogey on the par-3 and finished the day at a 2-over 74. Gradecki is 2-over for the tournament.

The final round of the tournament concludes Sunday. ETSU tees off at 9:20 a.m., and will be paired with No. 8 Washington and No. 24 Auburn. Live scoring of the tournament can be accessed via GolfStat.com and live video will be available for the final round by visiting TheUSCC.org.

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For more information on Buccaneer men’s golf, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men’s golf page.