FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Led by a freshman Cole Castro, the FGCU men's golf team is tied for 7th after 36 holes and day one of the Loyola (Md.) Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate at Fort Lauderdale Country Club's North Course on Monday.
 
Castro (Homestead, Fla./South Dade HS) is tied for 3rd overall at -1 following rounds of 70 and 73, respectively, to sit just two shots behind tournament leader Nick Rencis (-3) from Old Dominion.
 
As a team, the Eagles shot an opening-round 294 in the morning before following it up with a 298 in the afternoon. Castro led the Green and Blue each round with the aforementioned 2-under and 1-over performances as FGCU is tied with St. Bonaventure, but just nine shots out of 2nd place.
 
The 14-team field is tightly compacted as teams 2-10 after day one are separated by only 12 shots, and teams 2-14 are separated by 21 shots. Meanwhile, tournament leader Toledo (573) has a 10-shot lead on 2nd-place Austin Peay (583).
 
Castro is FGCU's only player ranked in the top 10 as he finished five shots better than Michael Keymont (Orlando, Fla./Eastern Florida State College/Timber Creek) who is tied for 31st out of 90 golfers after shooting back-to-back rounds of 74 (148). Doug Smith (Windermere, Fla./Olympia HS) is tied for 44th after he signed for consecutive rounds of 75 (150).
 
Andrew Potter (Naples, Fla./Community School of Naples) recorded rounds of 77 and 76 (153), while Grant Renegar (McComb, Miss./Meridian CC/Parklane Academy) rounded out the FGCU lineup with a 75 and 79 (154).
 
"Cole played really strong, and it's nice to see him as a freshman put together performances like this," commented FGCU head coach Eric Booker. "We didn't play great, but at the same time we didn't play poorly, and with a solid final round we have a shot at getting into the top 2 or 3 with how close the teams are ahead of us."
 
In addition to the main FGCU quintet, James Leadbetter (Bradenton, Fla./Arkansas/IMG Academy) played as an individual and finished with rounds of 78 and 77 (155).
 
The 54-hole tournament will conclude on Tuesday with FGCU's tee times beginning off the 1st hole at 7:45 a.m. There is no live scoring for this event; however, results and a recap will be available on FGCUAthletics.com following action.
 
FGCU Individual Performances
T-3) Cole Castro: 70-73: 143
T-31) Michael Keymont: 74-74: 148
T-44) Doug Smith: 75-75: 150
T-61) Andrew Potter: 77-76: 153
T-66) Grant Renegar: 75-79: 154
T-70) James Leadbetter: 78-77: 155
 
Fort Lauderdale Intercollegiate Team Standings (# Golfstat Ranking)
1) #113 Toledo: 288-285: 573
2) #200 Austin Peay: 284-299: 583
3) #142 Connecticut: 292-292: 584
4) #139 Boston College: 290-295: 585
5) #189 FAU: 299-289: 588
6) #141 Old Dominion: 298-293: 591
T-7) #196 FGCU: 294-298: 592
T-7) #229 St. Bonaventure: 295-297: 592
9) #143 Loyola (Md.): 296-298: 594
10) #214 Drexel: 296-299: 595
11) #218 Davidson: 303-296: 599
12) #228 Hartford: 298-302: 600
13) #236 Villanova: 301-301: 602
14) #269 St. John's: 300-304: 604
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For schedule updates, news and information, visit FGCUAthletics.com. For the latest news and behind-the-scenes access to information, photos and videos, follow @FGCU_MGolf on Twitter and @FGCU_MGolf on Instagram.
 
COACH BOOKER
FGCU is led by 4th-year coach Eric Booker, a member of the PGA Tour and Web.com Tour (formerly the Nationwide Series) for portions of 17 years from 1990-2007. He has led the Eagles to a pair of wins in limited-field events the last two years, in addition to a tie for 1st at Stetson's Legacy Intercollegiate in February of 2018. Booker finished in the top 5 three times in tournaments on the PGA Tour, and also played in the U.S. Open and PGA Championship. He played in 62 career events on the PGA Tour, with his best finish being a tie for 3rd at the 1999 Honda Classic.
 
HELP THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.