May 19, 2005

KINGSTON SPRINGS, Tenn. - Sophomore golfer Duncan Stewart (Moray Shire, Scotland) is tied for 54th after the first day of the NCAA East Regional Men's Golf Championship at The Golf Club of Tennessee in Kingston Springs, Tenn. Stewart, the 2005 Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year, shot a one-over 47 through 12 holes on the par-71, 6,864 yard course before darkness ended the day's play. He is seven strokes behind clubhouse leader Kyle Reifers of Wake Forest, who shot a six-under 65 to take the lead.

Stewart, who started on the back nine, bogeyed his first hole before bouncing back with a birdie on No. 11. A double bogey on the par-four 12th put him at two-over before a birdie at No. 15 dropped him to one-over. Stewart closed out the day with six straight pars. Play was suspended for nearly two hours during the afternoon due to local thunderstorms.

Reifers holds a one-stroke advantage over Tennessee's Ross McGowen and Georgia's Brendon Todd. Coastal Carolina's Dustin Johnson also stands at five-under par through 15 holes, just one shot shy of Reifers. The Demon Deacons hold a three-stroke advantage in the team standings, carding a 13-under-par 271 on the day. North Carolina is three shots back with all of their players set to finish the first round Friday morning. Georgia is third at nine-under, while Atlantic Sun champion Georgia State is fourth, eight strokes behind Wake Forest.

Round one play will resume at 8 a.m. Friday morning, with round two set to start at 8:12 a.m. Stewart is slated for a 10 a.m. tee time for round two, pairing with Mississippi State's Joe Deraney and Tulane's Chris Wheeler.