The Valparaiso University men’s golf team climbed three spots on the team leaderboard on Day 2 of the Dorado Beach Collegiate, which is being hosted by UNCG at the par-72, 7112-yard TPC Dorado Beach Sugarcane Course in Dorado Beach, P.R. Caleb VanArragon (Blaine, Minn. / Blaine) paced a group of three Beacons who produced sub-70 rounds on Monday.  

How It Happened

• VanArragon carded a 67 (-5) to lead the team in Round 2 of the event. He climbed into tied for 19^th in a competitive, 106-player field, moving up 28 places on Monday. He now sits at 138 (-6) through two rounds.
• The team’s top tournament score belongs to Anthony Delisanti (Sanborn, N.Y. / Niagara Wheatfield) who followed his 66 from Sunday’s round with a 69 (-3) on Monday to finish 36 holes at 135 (-9). He is tied for fifth on the player leaderboard.
• The third Valpo player to go under 70 on the second day of competition was Mason Bonn (Carmel, Ind. / Carmel), who posted a 69 (-3). He is at t-48 through 36 holes with a 142 (-2).
• Freshman Adam Melliere (Zionsville, Ind. / Zionsville) carded a 71 (-1) to finish the day at 146 for the tournament. All four countable Beacon scores were under par on Monday.
• Golfing as an individual, Sam Booth (Carmel, Ind. / Carmel) went even par with a 72 to finish the first 36 holes at 145.
• As a team, Valpo bettered its Round-1 score by five strokes to 276 (-12) in Round 2. The team rose three spots on the leaderboard, as its 557 (-19) for the tournament is tied for seventh in a 17-team field. Valpo is three strokes behind Missouri Valley Conference foe Illinois State, which sits in sixth place.
• Host UNCG is atop the team leaderboard at 539 (-37), while Kent State’s Chris Vandette holds the top spot on the player leaderboard at 130 (-14).

Inside the Round

• Valpo’s 18-hole team score of 276 (-12) was its best of the season. In fact, this marked the third best 18-hole team score in terms of overall score in program history, behind only the 2014 Golfweek Program Challenge (273, first round) and the 2023 Rutherford Intercollegiate (2023, second round).
• In relation to par, the -12 was the second-best 18-hole score in program history and best since Sept. 7, 2014, when the Beacons went 15 under in the first round of the Golfweek Program Challenge.
• The team’s best work came on par-4 holes at 3.97, tied for third in the field. Delisanti is tied for the third-best par-4 scoring average in the tournament at 3.75.
• Delisanti owns a team-best 10 birdies, while VanArragon and Booth both posted eagles on Monday. VanArragon eagled the par-5 14^th hole, while Booth’s came on the par-5 ninth hole.

Thoughts from Head Coach Dave Gring

“Even though our scoring improved today over yesterday’s round, our ball striking still wasn’t where we wanted it. We had a good amount of opportunities to knock short irons and wedges closer to the pin, but we didn’t get much within 10–12 feet. We had 18 birdies and an eagle as a team, but that’s still not enough on this type of golf course.”

“We had one of our best starts to any round with 11 birdies and an eagle in the first six holes. We were battling through some rain showers and even two rain delays, but the guys really got after it and took advantage of some excellent scoring opportunities. Our Par-5 scoring was really good during that stretch, making birdie or better in seven out of eleven of those holes. We only made two birdies in the remaining nine Par-5 holes. That needs to improve for us tomorrow.”

“While we might have some rain conditions to deal with tomorrow, we’ve seen the course three times including the practice round, and we have yet another great opportunity to play well. We’re looking forward to some terrific shot execution and rolling in some putts tomorrow.”

Up Next

The Dorado Beach Collegiate will conclude on Tuesday in Dorado, Puerto Rico as the teams compete in Round 3 of the 54-hole event. A link to live scoring via GolfStat can be found on ValpoAthletics.com.