Although Notre Dame is the third seed at the Big East championships, it sits in first place after one day of play at the Reunion Resort Watson Course in Orlando, Fla. The Irish take a two-stroke lead over USF into the second round of the three-day tournament.
Notre Dame shot a total team score of 288, even score on the par-72 course. Notre Dame coach Jim Kubinski said each of his players had a steady performance.
"We seemed to do everything pretty well," Kubinski said. "We had a couple guys come out with some extra adrenaline and maybe a few early nerves, but for the most part we played consistently well throughout the round."
Senior Paul McNamara shot two-under-par for a score of 70 and is tied for second place. Junior Niall Platt also had a great showing, shooting a one-under 71, good for a share of sixth place.
Freshman Cory Sciupider also had a good day and is tied for 10th place after shooting an even-par 72. Another Irish freshman, Zach Toste is tied for 27th after shooting a three-over-par score of 75. Junior Andrew Lane placed last on the team in the first round and stands in 59th place with an 11-over-par score of 83.
Kubinski said the weather has aided the team's success in the tournament.
"Weather has been great," Kubinski said. "It was windy near the end of the round, which makes it a bit trickier in terms of club selection but overall I think all the teams feel good about being in warm weather. We haven't experienced this at a tournament since September."
Kubinski also said the team's focus is one reason why they are currently in first place, saying the team attempts to focus only on its playing on the course, not on how other teams are playing.
"You're playing against the golf course, and what it presents on each shot, and sometimes trying to battle your mind a bit," Kubinski said. "You can't worry about what you cannot control, namely what your opponents are doing. We're going to play each shot to the best of our abilities and accept the results."
Kubinski also said the team was well-prepared for the tournament and hopes its winning streak will continue today.
"The guys understand what they need to do and did a nice job of doing so today. We'll just show up tomorrow and play the golf course as best we can," Kubinski said. "We understand 54 holes is a long time, so we'll just be patient with our approach and trust our game plan."
Notre Dame will tee off again today at 8 a.m. and finish the tournament Tuesday.
Contact Meredith Kelly at mkelly29@nd.edu
