Belle Vernon, Pa. – After shooting a 316 (+28) in the opening round of the 2023 Vulcan Invitational, the West Liberty golfers settled in and saw a 24 shot improvement with a score of 292 (+4) in round two. The Hilltoppers are currently sitting in fifth in the team race with a 608 (+32) 36-hole total. The opening day of the tournament was played on the par 72, 6,824 yard Gold Course at the Cedar Brook Golf Course.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Playing as an individual in the opening week of play, freshman Jayson Beckner is the highest ranking individual after day one for West Liberty, sitting in a tie for 13^th with a 149 (+5). Beckner shot a team-best 73 (+1) during the opening round with a pair of birdies. He added three more birdies in the second round for a 76 (+4) round total.
• The Hilltopper's lone returning All-MEC golfer from a year ago, Bo Orecchio, leads the way in the team lineup with a 151 (+7) and sits in a tie for 23^rd overall. Orecchio opened the day with a 75 (+3) as he carded three birdies in the first 18. He added three more birdies in the second round for a score of 76 (+4).
• Sophomore Brandon Lawhon is one of two West Liberty golfers tied for 34^th in the individual standings with a 36-hole score of 153 (+9) on Sunday. He opened the day with a score of 82 (+10) in the first round, but he responded by carding the best round of the day by a WLU player with 71 (-1) thanks to four birdies in round two.
• Justin Doerr is the second Hilltopper tied for 34^th in the individual standings, also recording a 36-hole total of 153 (+9). After shooting a first round total 80 (+8), he responded with a second round score of 73 (+1) adding three more birdies to his previous three in round one.
• Derek Graham ended the day with a 36-hole total of 154 (+10) and sits in a tie for 41^st in the individual standings. Graham shot an opening round score of 82 (+10) and saw a ten stroke improvement in round two after using four birdies to card a 72 (E) in the final round of the day.
• Noah Seivertson rounds out the lineup for the Black & Gold with a score of 155 (+11) after day one, sitting in a tie for 48^th on the individual leaderboard. Seivertson carded the second lowest score by a WLU golfer in round one with a total of 79 (+7). After collecting a pair of birdies in round one, he notched two more in the second round to shoot a 76 (+4) to end the day.
• During day one four Hilltoppers saw a score improvement from round one to round two with Lawhon leading the way with an 11 stroke improvement, Graham saw a ten stroke improvement, Doerr saw a seven stroke improvement, and Seivertson improved by three strokes.
• Led by Orecchio and Doerr with six apiece, WLU totaled 29 birdies during day one of the Vulcan Invitational.

 
WEST LIBERTY SCORING 

RANK	INDIVIDUAL	R1	R2	OVERALL
WLU TEAM LINEUP
T-23	Bo Orecchio	75 (+3)	76 (+4)	151 (+7)
T-34	Brandon Lawhon	82 (+10)	71 (-1)	153 (+9)
T-34	Justin Doerr	80 (+8)	73 (+1)	153 (+9)
T-41	Derek Graham	82 (+10)	72 (E)	154 (+10)
T-48	Noah Seivertson	79 (+7)	76 (+4)	155 (+11)
WLU INDIVIDUALS
T-13	Jayson Beckner	73 (+1)	76 (+4)	149 (+5)

 
TEAM SCORING (TOP-5 OF 16 TEAM FIELD)

RANK	TEAM	R1	R2	OVERALL
1	Gannon	289 (+1)	295 (+7)	584 (+8)
2	Pitt-Johnstown	301 (+13)	293 (+5)	594 (+18)
3	Millersville	296 (+8)	303 (+15)	599 (+23)
4	California (PA)	298 (+10)	308 (+20)	606 (+30)
5	West Liberty	316 (+28)	292 (+4)	608 (+32)

 
UP NEXT
West Liberty will tee off the third and final round of the Vulcan Invitational at 8:30 a.m. tomorrow morning at the Cedar Brook Golf Course in Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania.