Sand Sharks finish 6th in USC Aiken Invitational

The USC Beaufort men's golf team posted a second-round total of 292, giving the Sand Sharks a two-day score of 9-over-par 585 and a sixth-place finish among 15 teams Tuesday at the USC Aiken Invitational at Kiawah Island's Cougar Point Golf Club.

Host USC Aiken took the team title with a score of 17-under 559. Coker College was second, six shots back.

Reed Howard was USCB's top individual finisher. He shot a 1-over-par 73 on Tuesday to finish at 1-under 143, good for 14th place. George Thacker shot 72 on Tuesday (145 total, tied for 17th), John Pannone fired a 1-under 71 (147 total, tied for 23rd), and Ryan Ruggiere's 76 (151 total, tied for 39th) rounded out USCB's second-round scoring. Chris Lane II shot 79 on Tuesday to finish at 154, tied for 48th. Wingate's Evan White, a former Hilton Head Island High School standout, shot 83 on Tuesday to finish at 159.

Sand Sharks coach Shane LeBaron was pleased with his team's effort in his first tournament as USCB's coach.

"I'm really excited about it," he said. "As a team, they came together really well.

"This is their lowest two-day total by almost 20 shots," LeBaron added.

The USCB men are next in action Sept. 21-23 at the Webber International Invitational in Lake Wales, Fla. The women begin their inaugural season this weekend at the Lady Falcon Invitational in New London, N.C.