Ducks in the Hunt After Second Round

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – Owen Avrit and Greyson Leach each finished inside the top 10 as the No. 25 Oregon men's golf team moved within six strokes of the lead after the second round of the 77th Western Collegiate on Tuesday.
 
Avrit fired a 2-under 68 in the second round thanks to a stretch of four birdies in five holes as he pulled to even par overall and put himself in a tie for 10th on the leaderboard. Also tied for 10th is Leach, who after shooting a 68 in the opening round on Monday shot a 72 in the second, using a birdie on the 18th hole to secure his spot in the top 10 entering the final round.
 
Oregon entered the day tied for fourth, and finished the day tied for fifth after shooting a 9-over 359 in the second round at the par-70 Pasatiempo Golf Club. Despite moving down in the standings, the Ducks drew them closer to the overall leaders as they trail by just six strokes entering the final day of play.
 
"This is a tough course," head coach Casey Martin said. "Our guys battled but Pasatiempo felt like the winner today. We will need to play great tomorrow, but we have a chance."
 
How It Happened: Avrit began the day 1 over through his first three holes, but sank birdies on four of his next six and finished his front nine at 2 under. A bogey on 14 put a dent in his score, but on the final hole of the day Avrit sank a long put for birdie and moved himself 21 spots up the standings.
 
Leach made bogey on two of his first three holes, but two birdies throughout the remainder of his front nine helped limit the damage. The junior was 3 over through 14 holes, but two birdies in his final four led him to a 2-over finish for the day.
 
A frustrating start for Aiden Krafft had him sitting at 4 over through 13 holes, but the sophomore sank three birdies in his final five holes to fight his way to a 73 for the day. Krafft is just outside the top 25 in a tie for 27th at 3 over for the tournament.
 
Nate Stember made 14 pars on the day, tied for the most by a Duck in the second round, but three bogeys in four holes limited him as he carded 72 for the second-straight day. Hugh Adams was the final counting round for Oregon as the freshman shot a 4-over 74.
 
Duck Scorecard
Western Intercollegiate
Pasatiempo Golf Club – Par 70
T5. Oregon                                      356-359—715 (+15)
T10. Greyson Leach                       68-72—140 (E)
T10. Owen Avrit                             72-68—140 (E)
T27. Aiden Krafft                            70-73—143 (+3)
T33. Nate Stember                        72-72—144 (+4)
T40. Eric Doyle (I)                          72-73—145 (+5)
T62. Greg Solhaug                         74-75—149 (+9)
T62. Hugh Adams                          75-74—149 (+9)                           
96. Thomas Jenkins Jr. (I)              77-D (N/A)
 
Next Up
Final round action begins tomorrow morning with live scoring available on GolfStat. Broadcast coverage courtesy of GOLF Channel and Peacock will begin at 4 p.m. PT.