EL DORADO, Ark. – Led by senior Josh Edgar who stands tied for 19th, the Georgia State men's golf team sits in a tie for 10th place following the opening round of the Sun Belt Championship at Mystic Creek Golf Club.
Edgar made a pair of birdies to shoot an opening round 76 as he looks for his sixth top 25 finish in seven tournaments this spring.
Georgia State shot a 29-over 317 and is tied with South Alabama and Troy with 36 holes to play. The Panthers are 15 strokes behind fourth place Arkansas State after 18 holes. The top four teams will qualify for match play with No. 1 vs. No. 4 and No. 2 vs. No. 3 scheduled for Wednesday morning. The winners will advance to the championship match on Wednesday afternoon.
No. 43 Georgia Southern lead the 12-team field at 5-over par, while ULM's Mickel Schmitt is 6-under par, one of just two golfers to break par on day one.
Since 1998, Georgia State has finished in the top three in the conference tournament all but five times with eight titles and eight second-place finishes.
Top 5 Teams
1. No. 43 Georgia Southern: +5
2. ULM: +7
3. Little Rock: +10
4. Arkansas State: +14
t5. Appalachian State: +17
t5. UT Arlington: +17
Top 5 Individuals
1. Mickel Schmitt (ULM): -6
2. Logan Pate (Little Rock): -1
t3. Ben Carr (Georgia Southern): E
t3. Sverrir Haraldsson (Appalachian State): E
t3. Daniel Cronje (UT Arlington): E
Georgia State Results
t19. Josh Edgar: +4 (76)
t25. Egill Gunnarsson: +5 (77)
t40. Ashton Poole: +8 (80)
t51. Will Chambless: +12 (84)
59. Maxence Mugnier: +17 (89)
Perfect Timing:Â Tee times begin at 9:30 a.m. ET, on Monday and Tuesday. The teams will play 18 holes each day. The Panthers will tee off with South Alabama and Troy on Monday at 10:15 a.m. ET
How to Follow: Video streaming will be provided live on ESPN+; Live scoring will be provided via GolfStat.com, while updates are posted on Twitter at @GaStateGolf.
Field: Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Little Rock, Louisiana, ULM, South Alabama, UT Arlington, Texas State, Troy
Next Up: With a conference championship win, Georgia State will automatically earn a spot into NCAA Regional play which will be played May 17-19 at six national sites including Albuquerue, N.M., Cle Elum, Wash., King Springs, Tenn., Noblesville, Ind., Stillwater, Okla., and Tallahassee, Fla. The NCAA championship is scheduled for May 24-29 at The Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, Ark.
