The Valparaiso University men’s golf team currently stands in third place in the Horizon League Championships with 18 holes remaining. The Crusaders stroked a 308 in Round 2 and currently sit at 605 (+29) through 36 holes. Valpo is seven strokes back of second-place Oakland and nine strokes behind first-place Cleveland State.

How It Happened

• Nick Seitz (Xenia, Ohio / Carroll) had the strongest round of any Crusader by carding a 74 on Monday. He is currently tied for sixth overall at 149.
• Peter Webb (Madison, Wis. / James Madison Memorial) stroked a 77 in Round 2 to bring his total score to 150, which is tied for 12^th.
• Michael Doherty (Lisle, Ill. / Naperville North) turned in a 79 to finish the second day of competition at 154, tied for 18^th. He’s followed closely by Mitchell Wittmann (Kaukauna, Wis. / Kaukauna), who is at 155 (T-20) after two rounds.
• Zach Cutler (O’Fallon, Mo. / Timberland) made a two-stroke improvement from his first round, posting a 78 in Round 2 to finish the second day at 158, tied for 28^th.

Inside the Round

• The Crusaders have performed well on Par 4 holes as they are averaging 4.27 on Par 4s, third among teams in the field.
• Valpo has 109 total pars, second to only Cleveland State.
• Wittmann has been strong on Par 3 holes (3.13), while Seitz (4.63) has been a standout on Par 5s.
• Wittmann has 25 pars, second most of all participants, while Seitz leads the team in birdies with six.

Standings – Through Round 2

1  1 Cleveland State  294  302       596  +20 
3  2 Oakland  301  297       598  +22 
2  3 Valparaiso Univ. 297  308       605  +29 
4  4 Detroit Mercy 302  307       609  +33 
7  5 Green Bay 310  302       612  +36 
5  6 Wright State  303  311       614  +38 
8  7 Youngstown State  319  309       628  +52 
6  8 Northern Kentucky  307  327       634  +58 

Thoughts from Head Coach Dave Gring
"Our shot execution was not very sharp today and we put ourselves in some more difficult positions on holes. It was evident with five more double-bogeys than yesterday and too many three putt greens."

"We didn't start the round well, with four double-bogeys and three bogeys in the first three holes. It wasn't an issue of the guys feeling tight; the shot execution was poor and we put ourselves in some tough positions off the tee."

"We played the Par 3s much better on the back nine, but we struggled with the Par 5s on the back nine. We played decent through the middle of the round and we need to start and finish the round better tomorrow."

"We are looking forward to the final round of the tournament tomorrow. It's good to be in the final group and the guys are excited to give it their best on the final day."

Up Next

The Crusaders will close out the Horizon League Championships with Round 3 on Tuesday at Mission Inn Resort & Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla. A link to live scoring is available on ValpoAthletics.com.