MG takes charge at Kaua'i Collegiate

LIHUE, Hawai’i — Vanderbilt came out strong and took charge in the opening two rounds of the ninth annual Kaua’i Collegiate Cup, hosted by Western Kentucky University Friday at the Wailua Golf Course.

The Commodores, paced by Jon Curran and Billy Whalen who finished the first day of play in second and third place, respectively, jumped out to a nine-stroke lead in the opening round and then expanded that advantage to 12 strokes after a long 36-hole day on the oceanfront Wailua course. Vanderbilt heads into Saturday’s final 18 holes of the 54-hole event with an even-par 576 team total.

Defending Cup champion Oklahoma Christian, paced by current individual leader Rhein Gibson’s four-under par 140 (a pair of 70s in the first two rounds), is second in the team standings at 588 strokes while Southeastern Louisiana is third at 596, two shots better than Gonzaga (598), in the 11-team field.

Vanderbilt’s Curran is second in the individual standings, trailing Gibson by a single stroke at 141 (he shot a 69 followed by a 72). And, knotted in third place at 144 are Whalen (75-69), SLU’s Matthew Carvell (73-71) and Old Dominion’s John Murphy (74-70).

Other team totals are: ODU (605), Lipscomb (611), Texas-Pan American (612), Wofford (621), WKU (625), West Liberty State (651) and Hawai’i Pacific (655).