Michigan
NCAA Central Regional
Sitompul Fires 70, Helps Michigan Sit Sixth at Regional
5/15/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
Site: Columbus, Ohio
Course: Ohio State Scarlet Course (par 71, 7,420 yards)
Tournament: NCAA Central Regional
U-M Standing: Tie-6th Place of 27 Teams (298) After Day 1
Top U-M Individual: Alexander Sitompul, tie-2nd (70)
Next U-M Event: Fri-Sat., May 16-17 -- at NCAA Central Regional (Columbus, Ohio), 7 a.m.
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Guided by a one-under-par 70 from freshman Alexander Sitompul(Jakarta, Indonesia/Bradenton Prep), the University of Michigan men's golf team closed today's (Thursday, May 15) first day of the NCAA Central Regional with a 298 team total to sit tied for sixth with Texas A&M and Illinois in the 27-team regional field. Wake Forest use a two-under 69 from Brendan Gielow to close with the first-day lead at 290. Alabama sits two shots back of the Demon Deacons at 292, followed by Oklahoma State (293), Florida (294) and Eastern Michigan (297).
Sitompul was near the top of the individual field early after posting five of his six total birdies on the front nine. Opening with birdies on Nos. 1 and 3, he quickly jumped to two-under after three holes before a double bogey on the par-3 fifth hole put him back at even par. He closed the front side with three straight birdies on Nos. 6, 7 and 8 to drop to three under at the turn. Using that momentum Sitompul opened the back side with his sixth birdie to sit four-under and earn the individual lead with eight holes to go. Bogeys on No. 11 and then No. 13 slipped him back to two-under as he relinquished the lead but maintained the second position. Sitompul bogeyed No. 18 to close his round just a shot back of first-day leader Gielow of Wake Forest.
Freshman Lion Kim(Lake Mary, Fla./Lake Mary Prep) and junior Bill Rankin(Traverse City, Mich./Central) closed the first 18 holes with rounds of 75 and sit tied for 38th. Kim got off to a strong and consistent start, closing the front side one over par after making eight pars and bogeying No. 5. On the back nine he opened with a bogey on No. 10 but erased that with a birdie on No. 13. A double bogey on No. 15 and a bogey on No. 17 closed out his first day of play. After opening with a bogey on his first hole of the day, Rankin used a birdie on No. 3 to put him back at even par. Back-to-back bogeys on Nos. 6 and 7 had him making the turn at two over par. On the back side, he recorded seven pars and had only two missed opportunities, resulting in bogeys on Nos. 13 and 15.
Rounding out U-M's first-day scores, junior Nick Pumford(St. Charles, Mich./St. Charles) carded a 78, putting him in a tie for 87th, and senior co-captain Tim Schaetzel(Atlanta, Ga./Pace Academy) posted a 79 and is tied for 106th.
For the second round of the regional Friday (May 16), the Maize and Blue will again be paired with Arkansas and Penn State and will start on No. 10 at 8:35 a.m. The NCAA Central Regional will conclude Saturday (May 17) with a final 18 holes. The top 10 teams and top two individuals not from a qualifying team will advance to the NCAA Championships on May 28-31 at Purdue's Kampen Course at the Boilermaker Golf Complex in West Lafayette, Ind.
Team Standings (After Day 1)
1. Wake Forest 290 2. Alabama 292 3. Oklahoma State 293 4. Florida 294 5. Eastern Michigan 297 6. MICHIGAN 298 Texas A&M 298 Illinois 298 9. Lamar 299 Ohio State 299 11. Indiana 300 12. Louisville 301 Tennessee 301 Colorado 301 15. Eastern Kentucky 302 TCU 302 Kent State 302 Wichita State 302 19. Arkansas 304 Penn State 304 21. Baylor 307 Georgia Tech 307 23. Texas-Arlington 308 24. Cleveland State 313 25. Marquette 314 26. Sacred Heart 316 27. Loyola College 318
Top Individuals
1. Brendan Gielow, Wake Forest 69 (-2) 2. ALEXANDER SITOMPUL, U-M 70 Charles Ford, Tennessee 70 Mark Harrell, Alabama 70 Graham Hill, Eastern Michigan 70 Kevin Tway, Oklahoma State 70 7. Tyson Alexander, Florida 71 Jorge Campillo, Indiana 71 Trent Leon, Oklahoma State 71 Matthew Swan, Alabama 71
Other Michigan Individuals
T38. Bill Rankin 75 T38. Lion Kim 75 T87. Nick Pumford 78 T106. Tim Schaetzel 79
N O T E S
Michigan is playing its third NCAA regional formatted event in team history. U-M played in the 1997 and 2000 Central Regional. The Wolverines advanced to the 1997 NCAA finals after finishing eighth in the 21-team regional field with an 874 total.
In seven regional rounds, the Wolverines have yet to post a team round over 300. U-M opened with a 298 total in the first round of the 2008 event, after posting rounds of 297, 286 and 283 at the 2000 Central Regional and rounds of 292, 292 and 290 at the 1997 Central Regional.
Alexander Sitompul's one-under 70 in the first round of the 2008 Central Regional is his sixth sub-par round of the season and the sixth sub-par round for a Wolverine at an NCAA Regional event. Michael Harris posted a three-under 68 (third round), Mike Affeldt had a two-under 69 (second) and Scott Hayes had a one-under 70 (third) at the 2000 Central Regional, while David Jasper had back-to-back rounds of one-under 71 (first and second rounds) at the 1997 Central Regional.
Tim Schaetzel and Bill Rankin are the only Wolverines to have started all 13 tournaments this season. Schaetzel has started the last 41 events for the Wolverines, while Rankin has started 24 straight events for the Maize and Blue. In addition, Lion Kim has played in all 13 events this season with 12 starts.
Contact: Tom Wywrot (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
