Flames in Fourth Place at Liberty Spring Invitational
4/10/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
A strong surge during the afternoon back nine holes allowed Liberty to climb up the leaderboard and enter the final round of the 2015 Liberty Spring Invitational in fourth place.
Liberty, hosting its first stroke play event since 2009, posted a 1-under par 575 (290-285) on Friday at Poplar Grove Golf Course, one of two home courses for the Flames.
No. 10 Oklahoma paced the 18-team field during 36 holes of play. The Sooners posted a 14-under par 562 (283-279) and are five strokes ahead of No. 19 North Carolina's 9-under par 567 (282-285).
Lipscomb posted a 10-shot improvement from round one to the second time around the par-72, 7,059 yard course to sneak ahead of the Flames and enter the final groupings in third place. The Bison finished the day one shot ahead of Liberty with a 2-under par 574 (292-282).
The 18-team field also includes three other Big South programs. After the Flames, Radford is in sixth place with a 6-over par 582 (291-291), followed directly by seventh place Campbell's 9-over par 585 (291-294).
Longwood sits in 13th place with a 27-over par 603 (298-305), while High Point is in 15th place with a 38-over par 614 (306-308).
A total of 15 players in the 94-man field are under par, led by North Carolina's William Register (67-70) and Lipscomb's Dawson Armstrong (69-68). The pair share the overnight individual clubhouse lead with a 7-under par 137.
Four players share third place at 4-under par 140, including Liberty's senior golfer Mathieu Fenasse (69-71). Joining the Lias, France, native are Columbia's Arjuna Anday (69-71), Oklahoma's Charlie Saxon (70-70) and Campbell's Mikko Lehtovuori (71-69).
Fenasse overcame a double bogey on the par-5 No. 3 hole (603 yards) during the morning flight, finishing the rest of the round with five birdies.
A birdie on the par-4 No. 16 hole (528 yards) got the senior to 5-under par for the event, but he gave one stroke back with a bogey at the lengthy par-3 No. 17 hole (238 yards).
Isaiah Logue is tied with five other players at an even par 144 (70-74). The freshman posted a 2-under par 70 during the morning flight, thanks to four birdies and two bogeys. During the afternoon, Logue carded a triple bogey on the par-4 No. 15 hole (449 yards), but erased some of the damage with birdies at No. 16 and No. 18 (382 yards).
Adam Eineving is tied for 22nd place with a 1-over par 145 (74-71). The freshman was able to trim three strokes off his morning flight thanks to birdies on four holes during a six-hole stretch late in the second round.
Payton Taylor overcame a difficult first round with his third sub-70 round since joining the team in January. He is tied for 40th place at 5-over par 149 (80-69), thanks to four afternoon round birdies.
Hutson Chandler is Liberty's final starting five golfer where he is tied for 53rd place at 7-over par 151 (77-74). The redshirt freshman shaved three strokes off his first round score thanks to birdies on holes No. 11 (524 yards), 16 and 17.
The Flames also have four individuals competing in the event, paced by Tyler Abrahamsen's 1-over par 145 (72-73), which has him tied for 22nd place.
Austin Inman is in 39th place at 4-over par 148 (72-76), followed by Colby Francis, who is tied for 47th place with a 6-over par 150 (79-71), and Harrison Winger, who is tied for 66th place with a 10-over par 154 (75-79).
The Flames will return to the Poplar Grove Golf Course tomorrow for the final round of the 2015 Liberty Spring Invitational. Liberty will be paired with golfers from Northern Illinois and Radford, with the three teams head off the No. 1 tee, starting at 8:45 a.m.
