TOCCOA, Ga. – With play suspended midway through the second round due to darkness, Anderson senior Reece Coleman's tournament-leading 5-under-par 67 has the Trojan men's golf team in first place following the first round of the McCoy Wright Currahee Collegiate Invitational, Monday at the Currahee Club.
"I'm very proud of our men's team today," said Anderson Director of Golf Danny Neal. "They shot the only under-par round of the day and have the lead after the first round. It was especially exciting as we anticipated scores being a bit elevated because of the difficulty of the course. Our guys stayed focused throughout the day and are in a good position to finish the semester in strong fashion. We have 24-27 holes left to play tomorrow due to stoppage of play early today. We are looking forward to finishing strong."
Anderson and Erskine are co-hosting the first-ever two-day, 54-hole event on a par-72, 7,513-yard layout.
Nearly every team in the 15-team field received votes in the latest Bushnell/Golfweek Coaches Poll, with seven of the top 16 squads in the nation competing for the tournament title, including four of the top 10 teams in the nation.
The seventh-ranked Trojans lead No. 4 North Georgia by seven shots following the first round, with ninth-ranked Lincoln Memorial two shots further back in third place. No. 15 Clayton State, 16th-ranked Lander and Columbus State are all tied for fourth place, with Erskine and 10th-ranked Limestone deadlocked in seventh place. Newberry is alone in ninth place, while Belmont Abbey was 10th heading into the second round.
No. 14 Carson-Newman, Coker, Barton and Young Harris all share 11th place, with King rounding out the 15-team field.
Coleman leads Lincoln Memorial's Harry Lord by two strokes and Clayton State's Felipe Gomez by three shots, while Erskine's Tom Bastow and North Georgia's Evan Thompson are tied for fourth place – four shots behind Coleman.
Anderson junior Calahan Keever and senior Parker MacDonald are in a 10-way logjam for sixth place, while freshman Alejandro de Castro headed into the second round in a tie for 16th. Junior Daniel Coker was tied for 20th following the opening round.
The teams are scheduled to finish the second round with a shotgun start at 9 a.m., Tuesday morning, then get the third and final round underway immediately following the conclusion of the second round.
Notables
• Coleman's first-round 67 matched the eighth-lowest round in program history.
• The Trojans have already written their names in the school history books by winning three consecutive tournament titles in a season.
• The team is seeking to make school history by winning its 4th event of the fall, and its 4th event in a row.
• AU has already set the school record for 18 holes this year with a 275 - in the second round of the Columbus State Cougar Invitational.
• The Trojans also own the second-lowest round in program history – with a 277 at the Camden Collegiate.
• AU has already set the school record for 54 holes this year with an 846 – at North Georgia's Mizuno Intercollegiate.
• The Trojans also own the second-lowest 54-hole score in program history – with an 847 at the Camden Collegiate.
• AU's first-round 284 matches the 15-lowest round in school history.
Anderson 284
1 Reece Coleman 67
T6 Calahan Keever 72
T6 Parker MacDonald 72
T16 Alejandro de Castro 73
T20 Daniel Coker 74
Teams Scores
1. Anderson 284 -4
2. North Georgia 291 +3
3. Lincoln Memorial 293 +5
T4. Columbus State 300 +12
T4. Lander 300 +12
T4. Clayton State 300 +12
T7. Erskine 302 +14
T7. Limestone 302 +14
9. Newberry 304 +16
10. Belmont Abbey 306 +18
T11. Barton 308 +20
T11. Young Harris 308 +20
T11. Carson-Newman 308 +20
T11. Coker 308 +20
15. King 311 +23
