The Valparaiso University men’s golf team teed off the program’s first ever tournament held outside of the United States on Friday, golfing the first 27 holes of the 54-hole Monterrey Collegiate Classic, hosted by George Washington at the par-72, 3483-yard Mitras Club Campestre Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico this weekend. Anthony Delisanti (Sanborn, N.Y. / Niagara Wheatfield) paced the team on Day 1.

How It Happened

• Delisanti finished the day at five under, tied for eighth in a 62-player field. He carded a 69 in the opening round.
• He was followed by Elliot Lee (Tillamook, Ore. / Tillamook), who went even par to finish the day tied for 30^th.
• Valpo’s Caleb VanArragon (Blaine, Minn. / Blaine) and Owen Sander (Carmel, Ind. / Carmel) both went two strokes over par, tied for 34^th in the competitive field.
• Valpo finished the day at four strokes under par, seventh of 10 on the team leaderboard.
• Loyola Maryland owns the top spot among participating teams at -24, while Carson Gallaher of Tarleton State and Jackson Roman of Loyola Maryland are tied for the top spot at eight under.

Inside the Round

• Valpo posted 27 birdies, led by Delisanti with seven.
• Delisanti had a 3.85 scoring average on par 4s, while Lee had a team-best 2.86 on par-3 holes.
• Valpo scuffled on par-5 scoring with a 4.91 average, but posted a 4.03 on par 4s and 3.14 on par 3s.

Thoughts from Head Coach Dave Gring

“We had another good start to a tournament, with three of our guys making birdie on the first hole and playing the first eight holes at five under. We were able to get our first-round score as deep as -11 through 14 holes and that had us sitting in third Place at the time. We struggled again finishing the round, giving six shots back to par in the last five holes. In the final nine holes of the day, we only made five birdies and lost more shots to the field."

“Part of our game plan coming into the tournament was to take advantage of the Par 5s and play the Par 3s as close to even par as possible. We played the Par 5s extremely poorly, struggling off the tee to hit fairways, poor execution with second shots and even a host of 3-putts. We lost significant ground to the field on the Par 5s alone and we need to improve in this area significantly tomorrow. Our Par 3 scoring was adequate, but we still gave five shots back to the course on those holes.”

“Elliot was a real bright spot for us, playing even par on the front nine and making three birdies on the back nine to shoot 69. We need that type of production from our fifth-man score and he really stepped-up for us. Elliot’s ball-striking was consistent and his putter was terrific for him. Anthony was rock solid for us! He only had two bogeys on the entire day and he made seven birdies. His ball-striking was superb, hitting 26 out of 27 greens in regulation. He played the Par 5s at four under, so that was another positive for us.”

Up Next

The final 27 holes of the tournament will take place on Saturday. A link to live scoring can be found on ValpoAthletics.com.