The Valparaiso University men’s golf team opened the Marquette Intercollegiate at Milwaukee Country Club in River Hills, Wis. on Sunday with 36 holes of competition.

How It Happened

• Sophomore Mitchell Wittmann (Kaukauna, Wis. / Kaukauna) paced the Crusaders by carding a 149 through two rounds. He stroked a 74 in Round 1 before posting a 75 on the second 18 holes. Overall, Whittman is tied for 43^rd entering Monday.
• Senior Peter Webb (Madison, Wis. / James Madison Memorial) finished the day at 151, two strokes off the team pace sets by Wittmann. Webb matched Wittman for the team lead with a 74 through 18 holes, but then carded a 77 in the second round.
• Redshirt junior Adam Baracani (Normal, Ill. / University) put together a solid effort on the tournament’s first day and ranks 56^th overall at 155.
• Zach Cutler (O’Fallon, Mo. / Timberland) is 62^nd overall at 158, while Ross Lazar (Okemos, Mich. / Okemos) is 66^th at 163.
• After finishing the first round with a score of 83, freshman Matthew McCarthy (O’Fallon, Ill. / Althoff Catholic) made significant improvement in Round 2 by stroking a 76. His total score of 159 in 63^rd overall. McCarthy is competing in the Marquette Intercollegiate as an individual.
• The Crusaders head into Monday’s third round in 10^th place in the 10-team event. They hold a team score of 613 through 36 holes. Valpo shot 304 in the first round, then finished at 309 in Round 2.

Inside the Rounds

• Wittmann is in position to lead the Crusaders for the second consecutive tournament after doing so in the Ram Masters Invitational. He stroked a career-best 69 in the final round of that event.
• Webb had a team-most five birdies on the day.
• Baracani’s rounds were his two best of the season. His previous season low was an 82, but he stroked a 77 in the first round and a 78 in the final 18 despite battling difficult weather conditions. This is just Baracani’s second tournament of the year and first since the Crusader Collegiate Sept. 6-7.
• Baracani thrived on Par 3 holes, tying for second best in the tournament with a 2.75 average.

Thoughts from Head Coach David Gring

"The start of our first round was pretty poor, with the team playing our first 20 holes, 23 over par.  While the rain was a factor for the first nine holes, we need to have a much better start, eliminate the big hole scores and commence the round with some momentum."

"Our execution of shots was simply not very sharp.  The team hit the fairways off the tee pretty well, but the irons into the greens were quite inconsistent and we left ourselves in difficult positions around the green.  I wasn't happy with the speed of our putts, leaving too many challenging short putts for par or even bogey."

"One of the great things about golf is tomorrow is a new day and we have a fresh start to our third round, a terrific golf course and tournament field.  We will look forward to the opportunity to play a lot better and more consistent, across all six guys."

Up Next

The Crusaders will round out the Marquette Intercollegiate on Monday at the Milwaukee Country Club. A link to live stats will be available on ValpoAthletics.com. After Monday, the Crusaders will not return to the course until Oct. 17 in the Dayton Flyer Invitational.