April 26, 2005

KINGWOOD - Lamar, who led after Monday's first round, slipped to third place following Tuesday's second round at the 42nd Southland Conference Men's Golf Championships at the Kingwood Forest Golf Club.

The Cardinals' trio of Dawie Van Der Walt, Shawn Stefani and Andre Metzger are all tied for sixth place at 3-over par 147 on the par-72, 7,058-yard course. Van Der Walt, a freshman from South Africa, posted a 76 on Tuesday after carding a 1-under 71 on Monday.

A senior from Baytown, Stefani also posted a 76 on Tuesday after firing a 1-under 71 on Monday. Metzger, a senior from Norman, Okla., turned in the Cardinals best round of the day with a 1-over 73 after opening with a 74.

"We played the last two holes at 9-over par as a team and you can't do that if you are going to win," said Lamar coach Brad McMakin. "We were right in the tournament until that point and we just let the round slip away. You just can't have that bad a round.

"UTA is a very good team and I'm not sure we can catch them. We just have to go out and put together one of our best rounds of the year and see what happens. We have the ability to put some pressure on them because I think we have some good players."

Jordan Krantz of Texas-Arlington leads the field with a 36-hole score of 4-under par 139 following rounds of 69 and 70. Tim Kunick of Louisiana-Monroe is second with a two-round total score of 70-71--141 (-3) and UTA's Tyrone Mordt is third at 71-71--142 (-2).

UTA, who trailed Lamar by a stroke, fired a 2-over 290 on Tuesday for a 36-hole total of 289-290--579. UL-Monroe, who carded a 291, is second at 588. Lamar, who shot even-par 288 on Monday, posted a 301 on Tuesday and is in third place at 589, 10 shots off the lead.

Dusty Smith, a sophomore from The Woodlands, shot a 76 in the second round and is tied for 15th place at 150. Sophomore Ryan Kornmann, a Kingwood native, is tied for 23rd at 152 following Tuesday's round of 80.

The 10-team field will play the final 18 holes today with tee times beginning at 8 a.m. The Cardinals will start teeing off at 10 a.m. The team champion receives the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Regional Tournament.