KIAWAH ISLAND, SC-The USCB men's golf team fired an opening round five over par 293 Monday and are the early leaders at the Kiawah Island Invitational hosted by USC Aiken. The tournament is being played on the 6853 yard par 72 Cougar Point Course on Kiawah Island. Georgia College and State University, the NCAA II sixth ranked team is the leading team after posting a 292, one shot ahead of the Sand Sharks and Barton College.  There are 21 teams entered in the tournament.
 
“We played pretty decent, but we did leave some shots on the course,” said Coach Chris Cuneo at the completion of the first 18 holes. The tournament will conclude on Tuesday with the final round.
Senior George Thacker led the Sand Sharks firing an opening round of two under par 70. He is one stroke out of the lead held by Gavin Hay of Carson Newman College. Luke McClellan opened with a 73 while the next two USCB scorers were Jon Pannone and Jack Bingham each with 75's. Chris Lane rounded out the Sand Shark scores with a 76.
 
The Sand Sharks are coming off a very successful 2009-10 season as they finished fourth at the NAIA National Championships. They are also ranked fourth in the national preseason poll. All five golfers playing in Kiawah were members of the national squad from this past spring.