CHICO, Calif. – Freshman Braden Luper is currently in the top-20 at the Chico State Invitational, with the Montana State University Billings men's golf team sitting in 12th place after the first two rounds of the event at Butte Creek Country Club Monday.
 
Luper shot a 147 (73-74) in his first two rounds at the event to pace the Yellowjackets, who finished Day 1 with a team score of 616 (309-307) at the 15-team event. Luper is currently tied for 19th place, and earned St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day honors for the 'Jackets.
 
"After a slow start, I was pleased to see the men battle," commented MSUB men's golf assistant coach Marcus Drange. "It would have been very easy to lose faith in themselves throughout a day of 36 holes, but our attitudes kept us in it today. Tomorrow, we need to focus on getting off to a better start and staying away from the big numbers."
 
Junior Connor Miele showed the most improvement between rounds for the Yellowjackets, responding after an 81 in Round 1 with a 74 in Round 2 to sit in 54th place with a 155.
 
Junior Michael Porter and freshman Scott Larson are each tied for 64th place, after shooting 158 on the first day. Porter shaved four strokes off of his first-round total of 81 for a 77 in the second round. Larson fired a 76 in round one before shooting an 82 in the second round.
 
Freshman Austin Walter completed the field of five for MSUB, shooting a Day 1 total of 164 (79-85).
 
Holding a four-stroke lead in the team race after the first day is host Chico State, which shot a two-round total of 574 (282-292). The Wildcats are ahead of second-place Cal State San Marcos, which shot a 578 (298-280).
 
Tied for the individual lead at the event are Dylan Healey of CSUSM and Chris Crisologo of Simon Fraser University, each shooting a 138 to pace the field. Crisologo broke 70 in each round with a pair of 69s.
 
Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponents Simon Fraser, Western Washington, and Northwest Nazarene are also competing in the event among the field of 15 teams. The Clan is in third place with a 582 (289-293), the Vikings are in fifth place with a 594 (294-300), and the Crusaders are tied for ninth with a 604 (303-301).
 
The third and final round is set to tee off Tuesday morning as the teams will navigate the 18-hole course one more time to determine the final standings.