For most Division I programs, freshmen aren’t usually counted on to lead a team since they are normally green horned and wet behind the ears.
Ryan Celano is an exception.
Celano led the way for the Florida men’s golf team in the second round of the Tavistock Collegiate Invitational at the Lake Nona Golf & Country Club. Celano continues his strong play of late as he shot a 1-under, 71, with two birdies and one bogey on the day. He sits in a tie for 43rd place at 2-over-par.
As a team, UF is at even-par and dropped one spot on the leaderboard to 10th place. The Gators are 26 shots behind Southeastern Conference foe, No. 16 Vanderbilt. The Commodores shot 9-under-par in the second round to build a two shot lead over No. 3 Florida State.
Even though the team gave one shot back in the second round, coach J.C. Deacon was happy with the way his team’s performance on the second day.
“It was good,” Deacon said in a release. “The course was set up a lot harder than yesterday. We shot about the same score, so I would say we had a better day than yesterday.”
Senior J.D. Tomlinson followed up his 4-under-par first round, with an even-par second round. The Gainesville native had four birdies and four bogeys and continues to be the lowest scoring player on the team. Tomlinson dropped six spots on the leaderboard and is now in a tie for 14th place.
Fellow senior Thomas Stewart gave back one shot in the second round, as he was 1-over-par in the second round. Stewart is even-par after two days of play and in a tie for 30th place. The last senior in the lineup, Eric Banks, also shot 1-over-par in the second round and is tied with Celano at 2-over-par after 36 holes.
With four players being consistent in the second round, Deacon sees that the team making progress.
“We had four solid rounds from the guys, and we’re getting better,” Deacon said. “I can really see the visible results that we’re getting better.”
The one player who struggled in the second round was junior A.J. Crouch. The Jacksonville native shot 5-over-par in the second day. Crouch had seven bogeys to go along with his two birdies on the day.
As the final round gets under way today, Deacon wants the team to be focused in their approach.
“We just need to keep doing what we’re doing. We are obviously getting better, and we just need to stay solid and keep doing the little things right and be patient.”
Follow Luis Torres on Twitter @LFTorresIII
