Three Valparaiso University men’s golfers are in the top 10 and a pair are tied for fifth through 18 holes at the 2024 Missouri Valley Conference Championship, hosted by Missouri State at the par-72, 7060-yard Club at Porto Cima in Sunrise Beach, Mo. The Beacons rank third on the team leaderboard with 36 holes remaining.

How It Happened

• The team’s one-two punch of Caleb VanArragon (Blaine, Minn. / Blaine) and Anthony Delisanti (Sanborn, N.Y. / Niagara Wheatfield) each carded a 71 (-1) on the first day of action. They are tied for fifth in the 50-player field, four strokes in back of the tie atop of the player leaderboard between Missouri State’s Hampus Wijkstrom and Southern Illinois’ Leon Heitz.
• The Salukis own three of the top four scores and have raced out to a seven-stroke lead over second-place Missouri State and a 10-stroke lead on third-place Valpo on the team leaderboard. The Beacons carded a 291 (+3). Notably, the favorite to win the tournament – Illinois State – finished Day 1 in eighth of 10 at +11.
• Delisanti and VanArragon are joined in the top 10 by freshman teammate Adam Melliere (Zionsville, Ind. / Zionsville), who posted a 72 (E) and is part of a tie for ninth. The fourth counting score was a 77 (+5) from Mason Bonn (Sherwood, Ore. / Sherwood).

Inside the Rounds

• Valpo struggled on par 5s, owning the worst scoring average in the field at 5.50 on those holes. The team ranked third in par-3 scoring average at 3.00.
• Valpo boasted 14 birdies including four apiece from Delisanti and Melliere.
• VanArragon’s round featured three birdies to counteract two bogeys.
• Delisanti, the two-time defending league champion, had four birdies, one bogey and one double.

Thoughts from Head Coach Dave Gring

“It was a grind out there for us today. Nothing came easy and we really struggled off the tee, especially on some of the par 5s. Our execution on Holes 4 and 5 was poor, and that led to four double bogeys. We will make some adjustments to managing those holes tomorrow. We made the turn at six over, so we dug a hole for ourselves early.”

“The team played much better on the back nine. I was impressed with their poise and perseverance, not letting their rounds get away from them. We could have easily folded and checked out of the round, but the guys stayed composed and kept battling. Both Caleb and Adam shot one under on the back nine, while Anthony was two under and Mason played his last five holes two under.”

“We still have a lot of golf left in this tournament. Each day is going to present its challenges and we have a good plan to manage the course. We learned a lot about ourselves today and we will take some of that momentum from the back nine into tomorrow’s round.”

Up Next

The second round of the tournament will take place on Monday. A link to live scoring via GolfStat is available on ValpoAthletics.com.