University of Oregon
NCAA Championships
Sipe & Dukeminier Card 74's in NCAA Day 2
05/29/08 | Men's Golf
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. ? The No. 44 University of Oregon men's golf team was led by two players who shot two-over 74's Thursday to help the Ducks climb a position into a 24th-place tie in the second day of the 111th NCAA Championships.
The Ducks improved nine strokes Thursday with their 304 to move into a tie with Virginia at 24th, and improved on Wednesday's first round of 315.
Individually on Purdue University's par-72, 7,450-yard Kampen Course, senior Derek Sipe (70th-tie, 80-74-154) and freshman Jack Dukeminer (147th, 90-74-164) tied for UO's lowest scores of the tourney with Thursday's marks of 74.
With the Ducks opening the afternoon on hole 10, Sipe was even on the back nine after a pair of birdies on 11 and 17, pars on six holes and a double bogey on 16. On the front nine, he had birdies on the second, sixth and seventh holes, a bogey on the third hole and par counts on the remaining five holes.
“I played OK but nothing really major happened good or bad today,” Sipe said. “I had a few silly bogeys and a double bogey, so I know that there was more there potentially. It was good to play well early on the back nine which is the harder part of the course, and I almost holed out for an eagle on 2. The pins weren't placed too hard today, and the greens weren't too fast. Today was the easiest the course has played since we've been here.”
Dukeminier endured bogeys on three of his first four holes - the 11th, 12th and 13th holes ? then followed with par or better scores on his final 14 holes, including a birdie on the seventh hole.
“I knew after yesterday, there was only one way to go ? up,” Dukeminier said. “I had some bogeys initially but tried to shake them off, and making a few putts early helped give me confidence. I knew we all had to do well individually to give our team a chance, so I just focused on the things I could do to help my teammates. Even without the wind today, it's a hard course. I knew bogeys could happen so I did my best to manage things and especially avoid double bogeys.”
UO also counted scores Thursday from senior Joey Benedetti (70th-74-80-154) and freshman Isaiah Telles (122nd-tie, 83-76-159). The Ducks' other entry was freshman Sean Maekawa (130th-tie, 78-82-160).
“We were a little better today but not enough to make the move up we needed,” Oregon head coach Casey Martin said. “The course was easier to play today since the there was little wind, at least as long as you stayed out of the rough. Coming in, I told the guys to stay relaxed, knowing it's hard to play well when you're stressed. Derek had a nice recovery on the back nine. He had a couple tough holes I the middle, but the last 10 he was two-under. Jake wiped the slate clean today and did a good job of keeping the ball in play and putted well. Isaiah gutted it out and made a couple clutch putts to save his round.”
Overall on the individual leaderboard, four players posted sub-70 scores Thursday - including overall leader Billy Horschel of Florida (72-67-139). Also entering the day in fourth place, Kyle Stanley of Clemson carded a 68 Thursday (second, 72-68-140), while Nick Taylor of Washington (third, 75-66-141) enjoyed the best round of the tourney so far.
Team-wise, No. 14 Clemson climbed three spots Thursday to move into the lead (301-288-589) just ahead of first-day leaders No. 4 UCLA (second, 297-293-590) and No. 3 USC (third, 297-294-591).
Live video, hole-by-hole scores and regular updated results each day from the tourney are available at the www.GolfStat.com website. The same live video webstreaming can be found on Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Eastern Time and Saturday from 9 a.m. ET to completion at the www.ncaa.com website. More information on various NCAA Championships is available at the www.NCAAsports.com website.
Thursday's second day conditions offered nearly windless, cloudy, 70-degree skies, while there was a buzz around the course about the potential serious storms that could arrive Friday afternoon.
On the first day of the tourney, Benedetti stood in a tie for 10th place with his 74 Wednesday, and other opening-day placings follow ? Maekawa (70th-tie, 78), Sipe (100th-t, 80), Telles (126th-t, 83) and Dukeminier (155th-t, 90). Oregon's 7 a.m. tee Wednesday time featured cool, windy conditions for the first half of its round before the winds died, and the temperatures rose when the sun came out. Only four of the 156 players in the tournament shot under-par scores Wednesday, compared with 17 Thursday.
Looking ahead, the Ducks return for third round action Friday, and their first player tees off at 1:07 p.m. (ET). The top 15 teams after three rounds advance to a final round Saturday.
Almost two weeks ago in the West Regional, the Ducks earned their first NCAA appearance since 2003 thanks to a second-place team finish (and 3-under 295) that was 14 places higher than their pre-tourney seeding (16th). In that same event, Benedetti became the program's first ever regional champion and won by four strokes (9-under 207), and Telles and Sipe tied for 11th place (even-par 216). UO has enjoyed one of its seasons in recent memory under the second-year mentor Martin, and has 11 top-five finishes in his first 26 tournaments as head coach.
This week's appearance at the Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex course marks UO's 22nd NCAA Championships invitation. The Ducks made their first trip in 1947 and finished 17th, and their highest placing came in 1959 (fourth). UO also staked top-10 finishes in 1977 and '76 (seventh / 10th).
SECOND ROUND FINAL RESULTS
NCAA Championships
Kampen Course - Par 72, 7,450 yards
Birck Boilermaker Golf Complex
Purdue University
West Lafayette, Ind.
Thursday, May 29, 2008
* Complete results are available at www.GolfStat.com website
TEAM STANDINGS ? 1, Clemson, 301-288-589. 2, UCLA, 297-293-590. 3, USC, 297-294-591. 4, Florida, 302-291-593. 5, Oklahoma State, 298-296-594. 6, Washington, 305-290-595. 7, Georgia, 303-293-596. 8, Stanford, 309-288-597. 9, Kent State, 301-297-598. 10, Charlotte, 306-295-601. 11, Middle Tennessee State, 309-293-602. 12, Texas A&M, 309-294-603. 13t, Arizona State, 311-293-604. 13t, Illinois, 302-302-604. 15, Alabama, 309-297-606. 16, Louisville, 311-296-607. 17, UAB, 311-297-608. 18, Auburn, 306-304-610. 19t, Penn State, 315-298-613. 19t, East Tennessee State, 313-300-613. 19t, San Diego State, 310-303-613. 22, UC Irvine, 320-297-617. 23, Wake Forest, 314-304-618. 24t, Virginia, 312-307-619. 24t, Oregon, 315-304-619. 26, Texas, 311-309-620. 27t, Mississippi State, 326-297-623. 27t, Indiana, 313-310-623. 29, Augusta State, 326-308-634. 30, St. Mary's, 333-309-642.
INDIVIDUAL STANDINGS ? 1, Billy Horschel, Florida, 72-67-139. 2, Kyle Stanley, Clemson, 72-68-140. 3, nick Taylor, Washington, 75-66-141. 4t, Kevin Chappell, UCLA, 69-73-142. 4t, Hudson Swafford, Georgia, 73-69-142. 6, Tim Sluiter, USC, 70-73-143. 7, Joel Sjoholm, Georgia State, 72-72-144. 8t, Jorge Campillo, Indiana, 75-70-145. 8t, Chris DeForest, Illinois, 75-70-145. 10t, 3 tied, 146.
OREGON INDIVIDUAL RESULTS ? 70t, Derek Sipe, 80-74-154. 70t, Joey Benedetti, 74-80-154. 122t, 83-76-159. 130t, Sean Maekawa, 78-82-160. 147, Jack Dukeminier, 90-74-164.
- www.GoDucks.com -
Players Mentioned
