@OspreyMGolf Grabs Round 1 Lead at The Hayt

Friday, February 27

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (Sawgrass CC)

10:15 a.m.

University of North Florida

The Hayt

Photo by: Todd Drexler

2/27/2015 10:08:00 PM | Men's Golf

By: North Florida Athletics

Round 1 Results (pdf)

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla. -- In their annual home event, the No. 29-ranked North Florida men's golf team handled Friday's blustery winds and cool temperatures better than the rest of the field to sit atop the leaderboard after one round of The Hayt hosted by Sawgrass Country Club.

The Ospreys finished the opening 18 holes with a round of 296 (+8), one shot in front of defending event champion No. 26 Oklahoma State at 297. Junior Taylor Hancock, who carded an even par 72 to lead the UNF lineup, ended the day in second-place in the medalist competition.

Fellow junior Austin Padova and redshirt freshman Dillon Woods joined Hancock in the Top 10 after both posted rounds of 2-over par 74. Seniors Joey Petronio and Parker Jones rounded out the Ospreys lineup with matching rounds of 76 (+4) to rank tied for 21st.

"We played very well as a team today," said head coach Scott Schroeder. "With the way the wind was blowing today, I was very proud of our effort and ability to play a solid round. We are looking forward to another challenging day tomorrow. We have another opportunity to see how we stack up against some of the best teams in the nation."

In addition to the solid team performance for the Ospreys, junior Joe Stepnes paced a trio of individual performers for UNF, shooting a 1-over 73 to end the round tied for third. Sophomore Osten Waite and freshman Jordan Batchelor both shot rounds of 79 to rank tied for 52nd.

UNF leads a highly competitive 15-team field at The Hayt. The Ospreys and Cowboys are joined in the team top five by No. 16 UCLA and No. 18 Alabama tied for third at 300 followed by No. 8 Texas at 301. The Tide's Tom Lovelady was the lone player under par firing the low round of the day with a 2-under 70.

Tournament action continues with Saturday's second round scheduled to tee off at 8:30 a.m. North Florida will play alongside Oklahoma State and UCLA beginning at 10 a.m. on Hole 1.

The Hayt is open to the public with free admission. Live scoring for the event is available online at www.Golfstat.com.

11264