University of Northern Colorado Athletics
Friday, April 19
Provo, Utah
University of Northern Colorado
at
BYU Cougar Classic Day 1
Everyone chips in for @UNC_MensGolf in first day of Ping Cougar Classic
4/19/2019 9:28:00 PM | Men's Golf
Four Bears sit in the top 25 after the first day of Ping Cougar Classic
PROVO, Utah – It was a complete team effort for Northern Colorado men's golf on day 1 of the Ping Cougar Classic hosted by BYU. The Bears sit in sixth place after the first 36 holes were played shooting a 282 and 285 for a total of 9-under, 567. UNC is two strokes outside of the top five with Colorado State in fifth at 565.
Once the dust settled on the first day of the tournament, senior Li Chen has the best score on the team sitting at 2-under, 142 with back to back 71s. During his morning round, Chen pared his first six holes before recording either a birdie or bogey on holes 7-15. He recorded one more birdie than bogey over that stretch to shoot his 1-under par. In the afternoon, Chen struggled early on with three straight bogeys on the first three holes. An eagle on the par 5 fifth hole helped him get back on track. On the back nine, Chen birdied holes 11, 12, 14 and 15 on his way to a 34.
Three Bears are tied for 25th as they sit at even-par 144 heading into Saturday's final round. Those three are Joshua Matz, Coby Welch and Jack Castiglia. Welch shot the best round of the day for Northern Colorado with an opening round 6-under, 66. He came out at a blistering pace by recording a birdie on five of the first eight holes, including four straight from the fifth to eighth. After the strong morning session, he shot a 78 during the afternoon to move back to the tie for 25th.
Matz was the only other Bear to post a sub-70 round on Friday with a second round 3-under, 69. He birdied his first two holes to start the second round and placed six on his scorecard for the round. His 69 came after a first round 3-over, 75.
Castiglia is one of most consistent players of the tournament so far with 29 pars. He shot an opening round 73 and returned to even par with the 71 in the afternoon. Castiglia also has the other eagle of the day for the Bears.
Nick Sharp and Washington's Ranveer Grewal are tied for the most pars in the tournament with 32. He sits in a tie for 39th at 2-over, 146. Sharp shot an even-par 72 and followed it up with a 74.
Prenzlow's perspective
It was a total team effort today! All the guys contributed and played with great desire. Coby was great in the morning round and Joshua was great in the afternoon. Li, Jack and Nick were steady all day. Tomorrow we need to come out relaxed and confident to give us the best chance to put one of those great Bear rounds on the scoreboard!
What's ahead
Northern Colorado will look for another complete team effort on Saturday to finish out the Ping Cougar Classic on a strong note. The Bears tee of their final round at 9:20 am MDT. For live results of the final round, click here.
To stay up to date on all things UNC men's golf, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNC_MensGolf.
Once the dust settled on the first day of the tournament, senior Li Chen has the best score on the team sitting at 2-under, 142 with back to back 71s. During his morning round, Chen pared his first six holes before recording either a birdie or bogey on holes 7-15. He recorded one more birdie than bogey over that stretch to shoot his 1-under par. In the afternoon, Chen struggled early on with three straight bogeys on the first three holes. An eagle on the par 5 fifth hole helped him get back on track. On the back nine, Chen birdied holes 11, 12, 14 and 15 on his way to a 34.
Three Bears are tied for 25th as they sit at even-par 144 heading into Saturday's final round. Those three are Joshua Matz, Coby Welch and Jack Castiglia. Welch shot the best round of the day for Northern Colorado with an opening round 6-under, 66. He came out at a blistering pace by recording a birdie on five of the first eight holes, including four straight from the fifth to eighth. After the strong morning session, he shot a 78 during the afternoon to move back to the tie for 25th.
Matz was the only other Bear to post a sub-70 round on Friday with a second round 3-under, 69. He birdied his first two holes to start the second round and placed six on his scorecard for the round. His 69 came after a first round 3-over, 75.
Castiglia is one of most consistent players of the tournament so far with 29 pars. He shot an opening round 73 and returned to even par with the 71 in the afternoon. Castiglia also has the other eagle of the day for the Bears.
Nick Sharp and Washington's Ranveer Grewal are tied for the most pars in the tournament with 32. He sits in a tie for 39th at 2-over, 146. Sharp shot an even-par 72 and followed it up with a 74.
| Name (Place) | Round 1 | Round 2 | Total |
| Li Chen (T11) | 71 | 71 | 142 |
| Jack Castiglia (T25) | 73 | 71 | 144 |
| Joshua Matz (T25) | 75 | 69 | 144 |
| Coby Welch (T25) | 66 | 78 | 144 |
| Nick Sharp (T39) | 72 | 74 | 146 |
Prenzlow's perspective
It was a total team effort today! All the guys contributed and played with great desire. Coby was great in the morning round and Joshua was great in the afternoon. Li, Jack and Nick were steady all day. Tomorrow we need to come out relaxed and confident to give us the best chance to put one of those great Bear rounds on the scoreboard!
What's ahead
Northern Colorado will look for another complete team effort on Saturday to finish out the Ping Cougar Classic on a strong note. The Bears tee of their final round at 9:20 am MDT. For live results of the final round, click here.
To stay up to date on all things UNC men's golf, visit UNCBears.com and follow the team on Twitter at @UNC_MensGolf.
Players Mentioned
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