DAYTON, Ohio - With four golfers posting scores in the top 20 of the leaderboard on the opening day of play, WKU leads at the Dayton Fall Men's Invitational at the NCA South Course.

"The golf course played really long today, but we played pretty solid," said head coach Phillip Hatchett. "We left some shots out on the course today and our guys feel like we can improve on that tomorrow. Overall, we are very pleased to be in the lead. It is the first time that has happened for us in a while. It shows we are resilient. We are going to keep scratching until we can bring home a win. That is our plan."

The Hilltoppers opened the tournament with an 11-over score of 295 in the opening round, placing them in a tie for first place with IPFW. Host Dayton is third after shooting 296 to open the tournament.

Making his WKU debut, freshman Will Thompson (Paducah, Ky.) is tied for sixth in the event. He shot an opening round 72.

Sophomore Andy Gladden (Scottsburg, Ind.) and sophomore Cameron Beal (Bowling Green, Ky.) are tied for 15th place after shooting 74. Senior Will Beard (Bowling Green, Ky.) is tied for 20th place after shooting 75.

WKU is coming off its second top five finish of the year at the WKU/Kenny Perry Invitational at The Club at Olde Stone in Bowling Green.

For complete coverage of WKU Golf, visit the official website of WKU Athletics at www.wkusports.com.

###