Printer-Friendly Format     E-mail this article     Despite an opening-round 79 (+8) at the NCAA Central Regional, junior Josh Sandman is only 10 shots off the pace at this week's event in Columbus, Ohio.

 
Sandman Struggles On First Day Of NCAA Central Regional

Notre Dame junior is program's first-ever individual qualifier for NCAA regional play.

May 15, 2008

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Junior Josh Sandman (Greensboro, N.C./Southeast Guilford) got off to a rough start at the 2008 NCAA Central Regional, carding a first-round 79 (+8) on Thursday afternoon at the Ohio State Scarlet Course (par 71/7,419 yards) in Columbus, Ohio. Sandman currently stands in a tie for 106th place, 10 strokes off the pace set by Wake Forest's Brendan Gielow, who shot an opening-round 69 (-2) and was one of only six golfers in the 141-man field to break par on Thursday.

The first Notre Dame golfer ever to be chosen as an individual participant for NCAA regional play, Sandman was victimized by two bad holes -- his fifth (Scarlet's No. 14) where he carded a triple-bogey 7, and his 13th (Scarlet's No. 4) where he posted a double-bogey 7 -- which accounted for five of his eight lost strokes. The day's result tied Sandman's second-highest single-round score of the year, which he registered in the first round of the season-opening Gopher Invitational back on Sept. 15.

The top two individual finishers at this week's NCAA Central Regional who are not on one of the top 10 advancing teams will earn individual berths to the NCAA Championship finals May 28-31 in West Lafayette, Ind. No. 19 Wake Forest owns the overnight team lead at six-over par 290, two shots clear of third-ranked Alabama.

Sandman will be back on the course Friday at 9:02 a.m. (ET) for the second round of the NCAA Central Regional. Live scoring for the tournament is available via the Golfstat web site and complete 36-hole results also will be posted here on the official Notre Dame athletics web site and the Notre Dame Sports Hotline (574-631-3000) at the conclusion of Friday's action.

-- ND --

NCAA Central Regional
May 15, 2008 -- Columbus, Ohio
Ohio State Scarlet Course (par 71/7,419 yards)

TOP SIX INDIVIDUALS PLUS NOTRE DAME FINISHERS (of 141): 1. Brendan Gielow (Wake Forest) 69; 2. (tie) Charles Ford (Tennessee), Mark Harrell (Alabama), Graham Hill (Eastern Michigan), Alexander Sitompul (Michigan) and Kevin Tway (Oklahoma State) 70; 106. (tie) Josh Sandman (ND)* 79.
* - indicates individual participant