Still in the Hunt

Vandy tied for third after 36 holes in Louisiana

BATON ROUGE, La. — Vanderbilt improved its team score by three shots Saturday to remain among the top-five teams at the LSU Invitational, but the Commodores couldn’t keep pace with hot-shooting Illinois and Florida.

Vandy’s 292 equated to a two-day total of 587 and 11-over-par for the tournament. Florida (+3) had the best day of any team with a 7-under-par round while Illinois was a shot over par and is second at 6-over-par.

The Commodores are tied for third with Arkansas State heading into Sunday’s action.

“We are growing as a team and tomorrow matters because it is the next opportunity,” Vanderbilt head coach Scott Limbaugh said. “It’s important for us to see if we can stay locked in when it matters the most. I think it’s important to have all five guys in the fight tomorrow all day long, having fun, playing Vandy golf.”

Matthew Riedel (+2) was the lone Commodore under par with a 70 on Saturday. The sophomore from Houston carded six birdies to move into a tie for 12th overall.

Cole Sherwood (+2) is also tied for 12th despite a 75 on Saturday on the par 72 University Club course. Harrison Ott (+4) is tied for 26th and Reid Davenport (+6) is tied for 40th while William Moll (+47) is tied for 47th.

Jansen Preston, a freshman competing as an individual, is tied for 78th at 14-over-par for the tournament.

“I thought we were better today as a team which is encouraging,” Limbaugh said. “Matthew played awesome and did a great job going out and kind of getting us going. Harrison is playing with a lot of consistency and that’s very encouraging for our team.

“I think the guys understand we can be better if we all continue to own our mistakes. Most of the mistakes are simple things like a lapse in concentration or just trying too hard. These guys care a lot and I like this team a lot. We are having fun.”

Jackson Suber of Ole Miss has a one-stroke lead for first at 4-under-par after a 69 on Saturday.

Sunday’s final round for Vanderbilt is scheduled to begin at 10:10 a.m. and live scoring can be found HERE.