Wheeling, W.Va. – Led by a trio of athletes in the top-50 of the 130 player field, the West Liberty University men's golf team is currently 12^th among 26 teams at the Atlantic/East Regional Preview. The Hilltoppers shot a first round score of 309 (+25) and are tenth among the 17 teams from the Atlantic Region that are participating in the 36-hole tournament at the Oglebay Resort's Jones Golf Course.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Leading the way for West Liberty after the first round of golf was Derek Graham, who shot two strokes under his season average with a 74 (+3) for a tie for 15^th place. He tallied a score of par or better on 14 of the day's 18 holes played, which included a pair of birdies on the course's back nine.
• Bo Orecchio and Noah Seivertson held the second lowest scores among Hilltopper golfers on the day as they each carded a 78 (+7) round one score for a tie for 50^th place. Seivertson matched his season scoring average and tallied scores of par or better on 11 of the Jones Course's 18 hole layout, including one birdie on hole six. Orecchio scored par on 12 of the 18 holes during Monday's opening round.
• Awethu Mkhwanazi is just one shot behind Orecchio and Seivertson, posting a 79 (+8) for a tie for 66^th place. He also tallied scores of par on 12 holes during the opening round of the Atlantic/East Regional.
• Ethan Cook rounded out the West Liberty lineup as he turned in a first round score of 81 (+10) for a tie for 81^st place. He scored par or better on nine holes during the day, including one birdie on hole eight.

WEST LIBERTY TEAM SCORING

RANK	INDIVIDUAL	R1	R2	TOTAL
T-15	Derek Graham	74 (+3)		74 (+3)
T-50	Bo Orecchio	78 (+7)		78 (+7)
T-50	Noah Seivertson	78 (+7)		78 (+7)
T-66	Awethu Mkhwanazi	79 (+8)		79 (+8)
T-81	Ethan Cook	81 (+10)		81 (+10)

 
UP NEXT
Round two of the Atlantic/East Region Preview will take place on Tuesday morning with the 26-team field teeing off at 9 a.m. on the Oglebay Resort's Jones Course in Wheeling.