April 24, 2006

DADE CITY, Fla. - The Marquette golf team sits within striking distance of the BIG EAST championship, posting a second place finish through 36 of 54 holes.

Marquette shot a 13-under, 563, through the first two rounds and trails Louisville by five strokes with 18 holes to play. Marquette shot a respectable 285 in the first round, but kicked it into high gear in the second round. The Golden Eagles shot a tournament best 278 in the second round to sit in contention.

The Golden Eagles lead third place Notre Dame by seven strokes and fourth place USF by 10 strokes. All other teams shot par or higher.

Senior Joe Weber also has a shot at the individual title. He shot a nine-under, 135, for the first two rounds. He trails Louisville's Derek Fathauer by three shots. Weber has a five-shot advantage on third place.

Marquette and Weber could have posted a better score were it not for two double bogeys in the second round. Weber shot a five-under, 67, in the second round recording nine birdies. He had a pair of double bogies, one on three and one on six, or his score, and the Golden Eagles' total, might have been even better.

Sophomore Ted Gray is in fourth place at three-under, 141. His second round was highlighted by a eagle two on the par four third hole.

Senior Kyle Murphy is in 14th place at even par, 144. He shot a one-under, 71 in the first round.

Freshman Mike Van Sickle struggled in the first round, but rebounded in the second to finish the day in 18th place at one-over, 145. Van Sickle had seven bogies or worse in the first round, but had an eagle and four birdies in the second round.

Senior Nathan Colson rounded out the MU scoring, placing 25th at three-over, 147.

Final round play begins on Tuesday, April 25 at 8 a.m. EDT.