Hickman leads Bucs after first round

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico (Feb. 23, 2014) – Sophomore Chris Hickman (Centreville, Md.) led the ETSU men’s golf team as the Bucs wrapped up first round play at the Puerto Rico Classic on Sunday from the Rio Mar Beach Resort & Spa’s River Course in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico.

Hickman fired a 1-over-par 73 and is tied for 33rd, while the Bucs posted a team score of 10-over 298 and sits in 15th place after the opening round.

The field, which contains 15 teams, features 11 programs ranked in the top 50 of the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings, and 29 of the top 150 players are among the competition.

Alabama, the reigning tournament champion and current No. 1-ranked team in the country, sits atop the leaderboard after carding a 15-under 273 on Sunday. The Crimson Tide hold a five-shot lead over fourth-ranked Georgia Tech and sixth-ranked Georgia – who both totaled a 10-under 278.

Purdue’s Adam Schenk captured the individual lead after the first 18 holes of competition by firing a 6-under 66, as he enjoyed a bogey-free round along with tallying six birdies. The Boilermaker golfer holds a one-stroke lead over Robby Shelton and Cory Whitsett from Alabama and Georgia’s Joey Garber. Garber is ranked second in the Golfweek standings, while Shelton is seventh and Whitsett is 42nd.

As Hickman registered his 73, fellow sophomore Gudmundur Kristjansson (Reykjavik, Iceland) totaled four birdies in his round, but was haunted by two double bogeys on the back nine to card a 2-over 74. Kristjansson was 1-under with through the first nine holes, but the sophomore golfer recorded a seven on the par-5, No. 4 and a six on the par-4, No. 6.

The Bucs look to regroup in Monday’s second round as ETSU tees off at 8 a.m., and will be grouped with North Carolina State and UNC Greensboro.

Live scoring of the tournament can be accessed via GolfStat.com.

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