What You Need to Know:
* Georgia State shot an opening round 15-over 299 to sit tied for 15th of 24 teams after the first round of the Ka'anapali Collegiate Classic.
* Senior Nathan Mallonee led the Panthers with an opening round 2-under 69 and is just three strokes off the lead.
* Teams will play the second round on Saturday with a shotgun start at 2:30 p.m. ET/8:30 a.m. HT.
LAHAINA, Hawai'i – Led by a first round 2-under par 69 from senior Nathan Mallonee, the Georgia State men's golf team shot an opening round 15-over 299 to sit tied for 15th in the 24-team field at the Ka'anapali Collegiate Classic on Friday.
Mallonee made four birdies and an eagle to shoot just one stroke off his best round of the fall. He is tied for fifth entering Saturday's second round, just three strokes off the lead.
“We did some good things today in tough conditions,” head coach Joe Inman said. “However, we need to figure out how to eliminate the big numbers. That is what hurt us the most today. With that said, if we can put up a good number tomorrow, we can quickly move a lot of spots up the leaderboard as it is tightly packed.”
Junior Max Herrmann added a 4-over 75 for the Panthers and sits tied for 62nd. He eagled the par-5 6th hole and made a pair of birdies during the first round.
Twin brother Alex Herrmann shot a 6-over 77 and is tied for 83rd, while sophomore Nick Budd, coming off a win in Greensboro, N.C., last week, shot a 7-over 78 and is tied for 93rd. Freshman Egill Gunnarsson rounded out the line-up with a 9-over par 80 and is tied for 109th.
No. 39 South Carolina leads the 24-team field at 2-under par, one of just two teams to break par on Friday. No. 13 LSU is second at 1-under par, followed by No. 15 Georgia and No. 24 Clemson tied for third at even par. No. 33 North Florida and UC Santa Barbara are tied for fifth at 3-over par.
Clemson's Doc Redman and South Carolina's Keenan Huskey share the individual lead at 5-under par. LSU's Sam Burns, ranked No. 7 in the country, and UC Santa Barbara's Zach Smith are tied for third at 3-under par. Mallonee is tied with Georgia teammates Greyson Sigg and Zach Healy, along with LSU's Brandon Pierce for fifth.
The field will once again utilize a shotgun start at 2:30 p.m. ET/8:30 a.m. HT on Saturday. Georgia State will be paired with Minnesota, Boise State and former conference rival UNC Wilmington.
Following the event, Georgia State will return to action in the spring, Feb. 20-21, at the Mobile Intercollegiate hosted by Sun Belt foe South Alabama.
