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Men's Golf
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Saturday, April 19
New London, N.C.
All Day
Duke University
vs
Day Two
Duke Grabs Second Round Lead At ACC Championship
4/19/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
NEW LONDON, N.C. ? Freshman Wes Roach carded a season-best 68 (-4) and senior Michael Schachner had his second straight 69 (-3) on Saturday to lead Duke to a 10-under 278 in the second round of the ACC Championship at the Old North State Club at Uwharrie Point. The Blue Devils used a back nine charge to overcome a four-stroke deficit and grab a one-stroke lead over Florida State heading into Sunday's final round.
“Today was similar to the opening round with a slow start and a gutsy finish,” said head coach O.D. Vincent. “These guys are resilient and very determined. "Wes [Roach] finished extremely well and gained a lot of confidence today."
Duke sits at 19-under (557) through 36 holes with Florida State one stroke back at 18-under. North Carolina State and Wake Forest at tied for third at 11-under (565), while North Carolina and Clemson are tied for fifth at nine-under (567). Wake Forest's Webb Simpson holds the individual lead at eight-under (136) with Florida State's Matthew Savage one stroke back. Roach and Schachner are tied for third overall at six-under (138).
"We look forward to tomorrow," added Vincent. "Our focus is to remain patient and have a chance to win the tournament on the 18th hole. With the quality and depth of this field no one is going to run and hide. Tomorrow is our last competitive day for a month and we are going to give it everything we have."
Roach got off to a rocky start with three bogeys and two pars on the front nine to make the turn at one-over. The Knoxville, Tenn., native opened the backside with birdies on the par 4 10th and par 5 11th holes to move to one-under. Following three pars, Roach closed with a flourish by carding three birdies (No. 15, No. 16 & No. 18) on the final four holes to finish with a four-under 68, tied for the lowest round of the day. He ended the round with a season-best seven birdies and is tied for the tournament lead with 12 birdies through 36 holes of play.
Schachner continued his steady play with his ACC-leading 16th round of under-par golf this season, including a team-high eighth round in the 60s. He closed the second round with four birdies, 13 pars and one bogey en route to a three-under 69. The Libertyville, Ill., native has posted a score in the 60s in four of his last five rounds played.
Sophomore Adam Long posted his sixth under-par round of the year with a three-under 69 on Saturday. The St. Louis, Mo., native opened with three straight pars before carding an eagle on the par 5 fourth hole to get to two-under. He tacked on six more pars before moving to three-under with a birdie on the par 5 11th and closed the day with seven straight pars to cap off the bogey-free round. Long is tied for the tournament lead with 30 pars through two rounds of play.
Clark Klaasen, a junior from Grand Rapids, Mich., scrapped his way to an even-par 72 in the second round. He and Long are now tied for 20th overall at one-under (143) through 36 holes of play. Klaasen opened with a bogey on No. 1 but moved from one-over to one-under on No. 4 after sinking an eagle putt. He slipped back to even-par following a bogey on No. 8 before getting the stroke back with a birdie on the par 4 10th hole. Klaasen carded bogeys on No. 14 and No. 17 to slip back to one-over before closing his round with a birdie on the par 5 18th hole.
Freshman Matthew Pierce suffered a leg injury early in the second round and gutted out a four-over 76. The San Juan Capistrano, Calif., native opened with a birdie on No. 1 but dropped back to even-par with a bogey on No. 3. After getting medical treatment on the tee box of the par 5 fourth hole, Pierce carded his second birdie of the day. He went on to suffer three bogeys over the next five holes to close the front nine at two-over. Pierce continued to battle the injury and the course on back nine but could not overcome a triple-bogey on No. 13. He closed strong with birdies on No. 15 and No. 18 and is tied for 34th with a one-over 145.
"I was very proud of Matt [Pierce]," said Vincent. "His knee was in such pain on the fourth tee that he needed treatment. Even though his score did not count today, he displayed so much courage and gave it his best on every shot."
Duke will open final round play on Sunday beginning at 11:10 a.m. The Blue Devils will be paired with Florida State and North Carolina State as they seek the program's seventh ACC title.
NOTES
*** Duke took advantage of the par 5 4th hole, carding two eagles (Klaasen & Long) and three birdies on the hole. The Blue Devils also carded three birdies (Roach, Klaasen & Pierce) on the par 5 18th hole.
*** Duke played the four par 5s at the Old North State Club at 12-under in the second round. The Blue Devils had two eagles, nine birdies, eight pars and a bogey on the par 5s.
*** Long and Klaasen posted two of the four eagles on the 557-yard, par 5 fourth hole.
*** Roach had one of three birdies on the 181-yard, par 3 seventh hole.
*** Schachner has shot even-par or better in six straight rounds. He has been below par in five of his last six rounds of golf. He also has a 69.5 stroke average during that span.
*** Schachner has posted 21 consecutive counting rounds and has recorded a counting team score in 24 of 26 (.923) rounds played this season.
*** Roach has a 70.3 stroke average in his last four rounds. He has three under-par rounds and an even-par round in that stretch.
*** Roach leads the field in par 4 scoring a five-under (3.75), while Schachner is second at four-under (3.80).
*** Klaasen has posted 12 consecutive counting team scores and has been even-par or better in five of the last six rounds played.
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