The Eastern men’s golf team is in a rough spot after day one of the F&M Bank Intercollegiate Tournament hosted by Austin Peay University.

After the first two rounds of play, the Panthers find themselves in last place at the tournament following a combined team score of 615.

Eastern sophomore Alvaro Hernandez said the low place is a reflection of the team’s play in the afternoon.

“In the morning we had a very good round from Charlie Adare with a 68, so we were quite competitive,” Hernandez said. “But we didn’t play our best in the afternoon so it is kind of a bittersweet taste for the day. This is golf, a few bad shots that cost us too many strokes in the wrong moment.”

Adare led the field after shooting a first-round score of 68, firing seven birdies in the process. However, the second round was a different story for Adare. Struggling to shoot below par, he recorded eight bogies and one double bogey. The score of 82 dropped him from first place to 23rd overall.

Hernandez finished in a tie for 20th place to lead the Panthers shooting a first round score of 74 and 75 second round.

Hernandez said he will need to take a few strokes off his score each round if he wants to be in contention for a win this season.

Freshman Grant Miller was the team’s next highest in 50th place following a 79 first round score and a 78 in the second.

Romeo Perez followed him for the Panthers in 57th place after recording a quadruple and triple bogey in the first round for an 87. He followed up his first round with a 77 in the second round.

Senior Daniel Hughes placed in a tie for 59th place shooting an 82 and 84.

Missouri State is the tournament’s leading team after day one with a team score of 580. Following them in the top three is Mercer (586) and UT-Martin (587).

In the middle of the standings is a tightly bunched group that consists of Murray State in fourth place with a score of 595. Behind them is Belmont (597), Austin Peay (600), Tennessee Tech (603) and New Orleans (607).

Rounding out the tournament in the bottom two spots is Tennessee State at 611 and Eastern at 615.

JJ Bullock can be reached at 581-2812 or jpbullock@eiu.edu