Mercer University
Brickyard Collegiate
Men's Golf Sharp in First Round of Brickyard Collegiate
10/4/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
MACON, Ga. – The Mercer men's golf team posted its lowest round in the seven-year history of the Brickyard Collegiate Golf Championship on Friday to close out the day in third place on the team leaderboard. Freshman Emmanuel Kountakis led the way for the team, firing a 4-under 68 to position himself in a tie for third place.
Mercer's day one total of 284 (-4) is just one stroke behind Virginia Tech for second place and two strokes behind tournament leader Georgia Tech. South Florida (286) and Louisville (289) round out the top five teams.
The Bears were paired with two of the nation's top five teams as ranked by Golfweek, and held their own every step of the way. Kountakis and his classmate Sean Smothers both registered sub-par scores on Friday, joining 15 other players in the red.
Kountakis carded five birdies and only a single bogey to outplay 80 other competitors on day one. Smothers booked four birdies on the day, including back-to-back birdies on eight and nine to finish the day at 1-under 71. He'll start Saturday's second round tied for 13th overall.
Kountakis will start day two just three strokes behind individual leader Keith Mitchell of Georgia.
Junior Trey Rule signed for an even-par 72 and is tied for 18th while seniors Hans Reimers and James Beale used 73 and 74 strokes, respectively. Reimers is tied for 27th while Beale is tied for 33rd.
Sophomore Evan Usry, freshman Parks Brown and sophomore Jeffrey Heinicka, Jr. are all competing as individuals at the event. Usry shot 74 and is tied for 33rd while Brown and Heinicka each shot 75 and are tied for 43rd.
The second round begins at 8:30 a.m. Live scoring is available at www.GolfStat.com.
Players Mentioned
