CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. – Day two of stroke play at the Ohio Valley Conference Championship saw Little Rock extend their lead, finishing the day 19-under 557, 22 strokes ahead of second-place UT Martin (3-over 579). The Trojans also hold the top three spots on the individual side, led by Anon Albers' 9-under 135 with Nico Horder and Archie Smith tied for second with a 4-under 140.
The Trojans had quite the day on the back nine at Dalhousie, combining for 15 under par holes, including an eagle from Horder on the par-5 18th hole. Little Rock now leads the nine-team field in par 3 scoring (3.03), par 4's (4.01), birdies (45), and eagles (2).
Albers moved to the top of the individual leaderboard after finishing round one in fourth. His 7-under 65 in round two ties him with teammates Matteo Cristoni and Jansen Smith for the team-best low round of the season and is the lowest round of the OVC Championship thus far. It also marks his 57th career par-or-better round, surpassing Daniel Fox's 56 par-or-betters for the most in program history.
Horder and Archie are tied for second, three strokes behind Albers and one stroke ahead of fourth place. Horder's is now one of six golfers with an eagle and is one of just three players to finish both rounds under par. Archie finished round one in first place with a 6-under 66, but struggled on the 17tht hole in round two to finish the day 2-over 74 and now tied for second.
The newly-crowned OVC Player of the Year Jansen Smith makes the fourth Trojan in the individual ttop-10, as he ends the second day of action with a 1-under 143. Jansen leads he Trojans in pars with 23 and has made birdies on holes 15 and 18 in both rounds. He is currently tied for seventh with Southern Indiana's Jason Bannister and Lindenwood's Matthew Frith and just one stroke back from fifth place. Magnus Lomholt rounds out the Trojan scorecard, tied for 21st with a 6-over 150. Lomholt improved in day two with a 1-over 73 after a 5-over 77 in round one.
Tuesday's final round of stroke play will solidify the top four teams moving on to Wednesday's match play where the winner will be named the 2023 Ohio Valley Conference Champion. As it stands now, Little Rock (19-under 557), UT Martin (3-over 579), SIU-Edwardsville (4-over 580), and Southern Indiana (10-over 586) would move on to match play.
Round three will begin at 8:00 a.m. Tuesday, April 25 at Dalhousie Golf Club. The Trojans will tee off from hole 1 beginning with Lomholt at 9:40 a.m. Live stats are available at GolfStat.com.
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