Tennessee State takes over at PGA Minority Collegiate Championship

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- With strong winds playing a big factor for the second consecutive day, Tennessee State University stormed into the lead in Men's Division I, while Bethune-Cookman University continued to lead the Women's Division heading into the final round of the 26th PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship presented by Brown Capital Management.

The 2012 Championship, played on the Wanamaker and Ryder Courses at PGA Golf Club, features nearly 180 players representing over 40 colleges and universities. The 54-hole championship concludes tomorrow.

The Bethune-Cookman women's team, which has a team total of 616, saw its lead shrink to just five strokes over South Carolina State University.

Tiana Jones of Alliance, Ohio, led the charge for South Carolina State, shooting a Championship-low 4-under-par 68 on the Ryder Course.

Jones offset a bogey and double bogey with an impressive seven birdies. She leads the women's overall medalist race by one stroke over Bethune-Cookman's Patrizia Trevisan of Austria.

"I didn't even go to the range this morning, I only did short-game work," said Jones. "And it turned out that my short game was beyond an 'A' Grade."

Jones opened with an 82 on Friday and knew she needed improve on that score to give her team a chance on Sunday.

"I knew my team needed me and I had to go low," said Jones. "Yesterday I couldn't make a birdie to save my neck and today I couldn't keep count."

Hampton (Va.) is in third with a 643.

In Men's Division I, Tennesse State, which trailed first-round leader Texas-Pan American by eight strokes, opened up a five-stroke lead heading into the final round. The Tigers have a team total of 598.

Bethune-Cookman is in third place overall at 609.

The Tigers were led by Andrew Warner of Hendersonville, Tenn. The sophomore, who opened with a 76, shot a second-round 72.

His round was highlighted by a chip-in birdie at the par-5 15th on the Wanamaker Course.

"On 15, I hit a pretty bad tee shot and a pretty bad approach but I caught a big break when the ball went into the hole," said Warner. "That got me back to even for the day and I was able to hold it together the rest of the round."

Warner knew his team had to play well to give themselves a chance to win their third title in Championship history.

"We wanted to go out there and play smart with all the wind that was going to make scores higher for everybody," said Warner. "We knew that with a few good rounds we could get right back in it and that's what we did today."

Santiago Bueno from Texas-Pan American, who fired a second-round 73, leads the medalist race by three strokes heading into the final round.

In Division II, Fayetteville State University extended its lead to 25 strokes over Lincoln University in Jefferson City, Mo.

Morehouse College from Atlanta, which won the 2010 Championship, is in third at 642.

The Broncos were led by Junior Jake Barge of Fayetteville, N.C.

Barge, who opened with opened with a 72, carded a second-round 71 and leads the medalist race by one stroke over teammate Jedidiah Frazier of Havelock, N.C., who shot 72 on Saturday.

"We wanted to go out there today and do better as a team than we did yesterday," said Barge. "If you can improve each round then you have done something special. Especially on this course and in this weather."

In the Men's Independent Division, Justin Watkins from the University of Central Oklahoma grabbed the 36-hole lead, shooting a second straight 74 to lead Louis Kelly of Adelphi University in New York by two strokes heading into the final round.

"I striped the ball off the tee and don't think I missed a fairway all day," said Watkins. "I really grinded and just couldn't score well. I had a goal of getting back to even par and am going to have to play well tomorrow to win this thing."

In the Women's Independent Division, Mia Campbell of Alabama State University and Ariel McNair of Xavier University are tied for the lead at 163.

"My putting got better today and I hope it continues tomorrow," said Campbell. "Ariel is a great player, fun to play with and will be hard to beat on Sunday."

About the PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship
The PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship presented by Brown Capital Management, which will celebrate its 26th edition this year, originated in November 1986 following the Jackson State University Golf Tournament and has elevated golf in minority colleges and universities by providing opportunities to more players to compete in a national championship.

In 2006, The PGA of America was granted complete ownership and management of the championship by the National Minority Collegiate Golf Scholarship Fund. In 2008, the Championship featured a record number of participants, with nearly 200 students from 47 schools, with representatives from 14 countries.

Second-Round Scores:

Men's Team Division I

1. Tennessee State 302-296--598
Cameron Scitern 74-74--148
Ryan Pierson 75-73--148
Dallas Hill 79-81--160
James Stepp 77-77--154
Andrew Warner 76-72--148
 
2. Texas-Pan American 294-309--603
Kevin Kirakossian 73-78--151
Santiago Bueno 72-73--145
Mathew Charles  74-78--152
Jonathan Sloss  75-80--155
Chris Felix  76-82--158
 
3. Bethune-Cookman 306-303--609
Matthew Mcknight 77-77--154
JaMichael Jones  80-76--156
Alex Clapp  74-74--148
Emmanuel Petrich 75-80--155
Rafael Abad  83-76--159

T4. Alabama State 301-311---612
Scott Benson  77-73--150
John Montgomery  74-77--151
Jose Rodriguez  85-NC
Robert Grant  73-79--152
Joseph Killebrew 77-82--159
 
T4. Savannah State 304-308--612
Cedomir Ilic 76-72--148
Travis Roe 76-79--155
Ryan Lassiter 75-82--157
Brandon Neals 77-84--161
Calib Simons 80-75--155
 
6. Florida A&M 306-309--615
Justin Stills  78-77--155
Cody Sapp  80-83--163
Randon Holt  87-74--161
Anthony Phipps II 76-77--153
Shephard Archie III 72-81--153
 
7. Arkansas at Pine Bluff 305-318--623
Caleb Ray  75-84--159
Nqobani Ndabambi 75-77--152
Gregory Robinson 78-76--154
Shane Kelly  77-81--158
Elliott Rollins, Jr. 86-87--173
 
8. Texas Southern 322-321--643
Dominique Worthen 78-80--158
Jason Barton  78-73--151
Michael Calvillo 87-87--174
Quinton Leonard  93-90--183
Luis Colon Gonzalez 79-81--160
 
9. Maryland-Eastern Shore 322-329--651
Mike Veverka  78-76--154
Greg Raad  81-85--166
Paul Cecil  82-85--167
Christopher Toney 81-83--164
Sedrick Bailey  92-98--190
 
10. North Carolina Central 333-343--676
Spencer Jones 78-80--158
Ryne Toole 83-85--168
Andre Jones 84-86--170
Walter Batts 88-92--180
Jack Waissen 115-100--215
 
11. Hampton 351-359---710
Geoffrey Napper  100-93--193
Curtis Fearrington 79-82--161
Mark Irwin  91-88--179
Tyler Davis  90-103--193
Sean Moore  91-96--187
 
Men's Team Division II
 
1. Fayetteville State 300-293--593
Jake Barge 72-71--143
Brandon Jobe 80-74--154
Jedidiah Frazier 71-73--144
Lincoln Jackson 77-75--152
Michael Wallace 81-89--170
 
2. Lincoln 313-305--618
Steven Mallow 84-74--158
Jacob Sandbothe 77-77--154
Kyle Brennaman 76-76--152
Eric Kosmatka 76-78--154
Jordan Morris 93-86--179
 
3. Morehouse College 319-323--642
Bryan McElderry 78-75--153
Clifton Jordan 81-85--166
Justin McElderry 78-84--162
Alexander Atkinson 82-84--166
Bruce Cousin 85-80--165
 
4. Virginia State 317-338--655
Stephan Genchi 70-NC
Rashad Hunt 79-84--163
Aaron Bryant 88-88--176
Adam Clary 82-80--162
Dalton Jolly 86-86--172
 
5. Benedict College 344-328--672
Anthony Wik 83-82--165
Eddie Smith III 94-80--174
Jordan Buchanan 78-75--153
Kelly Willis 89-91--180
 
6. Paine College 341-332--673
Carlos Solis 76-74--150
Victor Tapia 82-82--164
Patrick Mobley 90-82--172
Ralpph Godbee 93-94--187
Keith Godbee 123-116--239
 
7. Winston Salem State 341-335--676
Glendon Mabe 75-77--152
Zach Sheets 83-78--161
Wesley Griswold NC-NC--NC
Mike Asbury 86-82--168
Kyle Collins 97-98--195
 
8. Kentucky State 362-346--708
George Dundon 89-86--175
Josh Jackson 83-81--164
RhoShawn Johnson 99-82--181
Carlton Foreman 104-107--211
Julian Jeter-Davis 91-97--188
 
9. St. Augustine's College 357-371--728
Derek Johnson 85-84--169
Ryan Pittman 83-85--168
Antonio Daye 90-100--190
Antonio Deese 99-102--201
 
Women's Team Division

1. Bethune-Cookman 305-311--616
Patrizia Trevisan 72-79--151
Estefania Acosta 78-75--153
Andrea Orozco  74-79--153
Marie Bergelin  81-78--159
Jennifer Hide  81-81--162
 
2. South Carolina State 324-297--621
Tiana Jones  82-68--150
Cheryl Chua  79-76--155
Carmen Jones  83-87--170
Cherie Chua  82-79--161
Cabriel Duren  81-74--155
 
3. Hampton 329-314--643
Kayla Williams  80-76--156
Nicole West  83-76--159
Iman Ellis  87-87--174
Dionne West  81-85--166
Maria Stewart  85-77--162
 
4. Texas-Pan American 329-322---651
Sam Garcia 80-82--162
Elena Arroyo 84-76--160
Blake Peterson 87-82--169
Marisa Canales 78-82--160
Ashley Garcia 89-83--172
 
5. Texas Southern 337-339--676
Kassandra Rivera 78-82--160
Adrianna Trevino 89-86--175
Bridget Johnston 89-81--170
Tyler Lawrence 85-90--175
Angela Rafac 85-98--183
 
6. Lincoln 351-332---683
Kaitlyn Schwartze 81-84--165
Payton Schooler 84-74--158
Shea Colley 87-87--174
Sophia Pardalos 100-87--187
Kara Harwood 99-98--197
 
Men's Independent Division

Justin Watkins, University of Central Oklahoma - 74-74--148
Louis Kelly, Adelphi University - 76-74--150
Julio Gonzalez Galvan, Louisburg College - 77-74--151
Aaron Burton, Adelphi University - 79-75--154
Juan Diego Fernandez, Louisburg College - 83-72--155
Casey Foster, University of Central Oklahoma - 80-76--156
Michael Ferguson, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 79-81--160
Christopher Davis, Carroll University - 74-87--161
Joseph Morrison, Alabama State University - 82-81--163
Jacob Mendez III, Calumet College of Saint Joseph - 86-79--165
Barry Davis, Alabama State University - 78-89--167
Buddy Senatore, California Polytechnic State Univ. - 80-87--167
Erik Potts, Hannibal-LaGrange Univ. - 85-83--168
Lawrence McKenzie, Livingstone College - 89-79--168
Minsoo Soh, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 87-82--169
Corey Price, Alabama State University - 88-82--170
Edgar Evans Jr., Southern University Baton Rouge - 87-83--170
Ben Davis, Calumet College of Saint Joseph - 86-86--172
Joseph Journey, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 85-89--174
Norris Brown, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 84-90--174
Bryan Martin, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 85-90--175
Anthony Long, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 89-91--180
Delton Pounds, Mississippi Gulf Coast CC - 98-88--186
Sean Wilson, Chowan University - 96-90--186
Richard Sheppard, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 98-91--189
Michael Harden, Clemson University - 97-93--190
Dylan Watts, Edward Waters College - 99-95--194
Patrick Harris, Methodist University - 98-97--195
William Brown, Prarie View A&M - 100-97--197
Charlois R. Fletcher, Louisburg College - 96-105--201
Richard Fleming, Univ. of Maryland East Shore - 102-100--202
Joseph Sable, Prarie View A&M - 117-88--205
Spencer Smith, Edward Waters College - 112-126--238
 
Women's Independent Division

T1. Ariel McNair, Xavier University - 84-79--163
T1. Mia Campbell, Alabama State - 83-80--163
3. Shanequa Valentine, Prairie View A&M - 88-78--166
4. Whitney Young, Wheeling Jesuit - 85-89--174
5. Alexandra Uduk, Maryland-Eastern Shore - 98-87--185
6. Michelle Gifford, Savannah State - 98-90--188
7. Cheiwah Ferguson, Texas Southern - 106-103--209
8. Allison Brown, SCSU - 105-106--211
9. Jamie Bruce, Benedict College - 112-119--231
10. Vanessa Adarme, Bethune-Cookman - 91-WD