May 15, 2008

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (SMU) - The SMU men's golf team carded an 8-under 276 for the opening round of the 2008 NCAA Men's Golf East Regional and is in third place following the opening 18 holes. Freshman Kelly Kraft shot a blazing 66 at the par 71 Council Fire Golf Club to lead SMU and to tie for third individually.

Sophomore Ben Tewes backed up Kraft's 66 with a 68 and is tied for 15th. Dan Kleckner also broke par and shot 70 to tie for 33rd. Scott Barton's 72 was good for 60th, while James Minahan rounded out the SMU squad in 125th at 76.

Georgia, the overall No. 1 seed in the tournament, shot 265 (-19) and holds an eight-shot lead over Augusta State at 273 (-11).

Round two of three tees off tomorrow morning. The top 10 teams and two individuals not on advancing team gain entry to the NCAA Championships hosted by Purdue, May 28-31.

Live scoring is available here.