McLean County Times

Illinois State men's golf team rose to fourth place after the second round of the Hawkeye Invite in Iowa City. Achieving a score of 277, the team tied for the ninth-lowest single-round in its program history. This followed an initial round of 289, bringing the team's first-day score to 566. Currently, Illinois State trails only Kansas, Little Rock, and Iowa in the standings.

Senior Will Troy led the Redbirds with impressive rounds of 67 and 68, placing him second individually. His performance included an eagle, numerous birdies, and pars, ranking him with the lowest par-4 scoring average and tied for the second-lowest on par-3s in the field.

TJ Barger, who was recently named MVC Player of the Week, ended the day tied for eighth following a second-round score of 66. His impressive play included multiple eagles and birdies leading to the lowest par-five scoring average, at 3.88 strokes, among the competitors.

Pietro Pontiggia matched the par for the course with rounds of 76 and 68, tying for 22nd place. Rounds by Alex McCulla and Aiden Cudney resulted in a tied position at 37th place, both carding scores of 147. Max Faucquez's rounds led to a 158 total over the two rounds.

The team is set to commence the final round tomorrow morning, beginning at 8:30 a.m., in Iowa City.

"GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Athletic Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more."