RICHMOND, Ky. - The Bluffton University men's golf team worked around some mid-round troubles, but finished strong for a 307 on day one of the Alice Lloyd College Spring Invitational. Competing for the first time since October, the Beavers stand tied for 8th in a tough 13-team field filled with NAIA scholarship athletes.

Drake Sommer (Montpelier) led the way with a 75 thanks to a team-best four birdies in round one. Fellow sophomore Aaron Gerber (Vermilion) worked around a triple bogey and a double bogey to card a respectable 76, just one stroke off Sommer's pace. Senior Noah Macke (Columbus Grove) and sophomore Jack Wyant (Mansfield/Lexington) played cart golf with a pair of 78's, while junior Carson Brubaker (Shelby) chimed in with an 86.

Bluffton will be back at Battlefield Golf Club for a 9 a.m. shotgun start on Sunday, March 22.

-BEAVERS-