The Valparaiso University men’s golf team stands in 10^th place of 16 teams after one day of competition in the Bash at the Beach at The Surf Golf and Beach Club in Myrtle Beach, S.C. The Crusaders carded a 307 in the opening round, before trimming five strokes off their team score by posting a 302 in Round 2. Valpo battled through adverse weather conditions, as rain and wind played a factor throughout the day.

How It Happened

• The Crusaders were led by Peter Webb and Nick Seitz. Webb carded a 73 in the first round and followed with a 76 in Round 2 for a 36-hole score of 149.
• Seitz shared the team lead with Webb. He stroked a 74 in Round 1 before notching a 75 in the second round.
• Adam Baracani is third on the team with a 153 after one day of competition. He posted a 76 in Round 1 before notching a 77 in Round 2.
• After carding an 87 in the first round, Mitchell Wittmann made a drastic improvement in the second round. He notched a 74, the best Round 2 score of any Crusader, for a total score of 161.
• Zach Cutler also improved in Round 2, trimming four strokes from his Round 1 score of 84 for a Day 1 score of 164.
• Jeremy Wu competed as an individual and had an impressive day. He totaled a 158 after carding a 79 in both of Monday’s rounds.

Inside the Rounds

• Seitz’s 74 matched his lowest round of the season. He sat out the fall due to injury.
• Wu’s 79 shattered his previous season best of 85. He’s a freshman, so his rounds marked new career watermarks.
• The Crusaders are three strokes behind Fairleigh Dickinson for ninth and five strokes ahead of Colgate for 10^th.
• There are two other Horizon League schools in the field. Oakland is tied for second at 583, while Wright State sits in eighth place at 596.
• Wittmann’s 13-stroke improvement from the first round to the second round was the biggest improvement of anyone in the 96-player field.
• Seitz led the Crusaders with five birdies, while the team finished with 14 total.

Thoughts from Head Coach Dave Gring

"We had improvement today over our first tournament of the spring two weeks ago and we will continue to build on that as we progress through the early part of our spring season. Our shot execution was better today, but we still need to convert more of our birdie opportunities and work on our proximity to the hole with our approach shots." 

"I was very pleased with the improvement in our second-round scoring, especially when you take into account playing through a steady rain the entire 18 holes. The second round became an endurance test when you factor in spending almost 12 hours on the golf course and concentrating through wind and rain. We had a good practice round yesterday in even worse weather, so that helped us persevere through today's round."

"Pete and Nick had a decent ball-striking day and they both were pretty close to making a number of more birdies. The greens were rolling very well and we simply need to improve on making more of those birdie putts within 10 feet.  Both of the guys put in a strong effort today with the inclement weather and we will look forward to tomorrow's round."

Up Next

The Crusaders will play the final 18 holes of the Bash at the Beach on Tuesday at The Surf Golf & Beach Club in Myrtle Beach, S.C. A link to live stats is available on ValpoAthletics.com.