May 16, 2008

Chattanooga, Tenn. - Western Carolina posted a second round, five-over par 289 on Friday to slip into 18th-place overall at the NCAA Men's Golf East Regional being played at the par 71, 6,961-yard Council Fire Golf Club. The Catamounts are 10 strokes out of the final transfer spot for a team entering Saturday's final round.

Paired with golfers from the Univ. of Virginia and Georgia State, Western Carolina's first golfer will hit the course at 12:12 pm, with the final Catamount teeing off at 12:50 from the first hole.

The top 10 finishers from the regional move on to NCAA Championship which will be held may 28-31 at Purdue University's Birk Boilermaker Golf Complex on the Kampen Course. Top two individual finishers not on teams advancing move on as well.

Western Carolina is being paced by senior Matt Cook, who followed up his opening-round 67 with a three-under 68 on Friday to move into a four-way tie for fourth place at seven-under,135, just four strokes off the overall individual lead. But, more importantly, the Murphy, N.C., native enters the final round currently sitting in one of the two individual transfer spots for the National Championship. Cook along with Virginia Tech's Jurrian van der Vaat, who is also tied for fourth, open play Saturday in the two individual transfer spots.

Through two days, Cook has 10 birdies and an eagle which he recorded on Friday to help him to his three-under. Over his last four rounds, including the final two at the Southern Conference championship and the past two days in the East Regional, Cook has averaged 67.75 strokes per round (67, 69, 67, 68).

National top-seed, Georgia, extended its lead over second place, Augusta State, by shooting a 13-under par 271 to extend its lead to 19 strokes. The Bulldogs enter Saturday's final round with a two-day total of 536 (-32). Zach Sucher of UAB holds a two-stroke lead entering the final round after posting scores of 69 and 62 for a 36-hole tally of 11-under, 131.

SoCon champion and regional host, Chattanooga, posted a three-under 281 on Friday to move into eighth place in the overall standings.

WCU sophomore Ricky Stout followed his one-over 71 with a four-over 75 on day two to stand tied for 89th with a two-day total of 147. He is followed by junior Dustin Furnari who trimmed two strokes off his opening round to shoot 73 and stand tied for 102nd. Junior Andres Cuenca lowered his first-day score by three strokes, shooing a two-over 73 to be tied for 112th while freshman Caleb Marsh is tied for 126th at 152 entering the final 18.

Live scoring of the final round will be provided by GolfStat and can be accessed by visiting www.GolfStatResults.com. Complete results and recaps will be provided through www.CatamountSports.com.