George Washington University Athletics
George Washington University
Atlantic 10 Championship
Cichan, Lowe Tied for 6th at Atlantic 10 Championship
4/29/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Golf
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Christian Cichan and Logan Lowe of the GW golf team both used strong starts to put themselves in contention on the first day of the Atlantic 10 Championship at Grand Cyprus Golf Club.
Cichan, a sophomore, and Lowe, a freshman, each shot 1-over par 73 and sit tied for sixth, just two shots off the lead with 36 holes to play. Both played impressively through the first 13 holes and were tied for the lead at 2-under until a difficult finishing stretch took its toll.
Lowe opened the day with birdies on two of his first three holes and was 3-under after another birdie on the par-3 eighth before a double-bogey on nine saw him make the turn at 1-under. He bounced back with his fourth birdie of the day on the par-5 11th before closing with bogeys on three of his final five holes.
"My biggest thing was making the round as stress-free as possible," said Lowe. "I did that the first eight holes and then 10-13. Typically I play my best golf when I see a target and stick with the game plan. Obviously I'm not happy with the way I finished, but I think it's fixable."
Cichan, meanwhile, was also dialed in early, as he hit 11 of his first 12 greens in regulation and shot a 2-under 34 on the front nine. He made par on the first four holes on the tougher back nine before making bogey on three of the last five holes.
"The way I played my approach shots it was pretty easy golf the first 13 holes - either 15-foot birdies or two putts for par," said Cichan. "On the backside I started missing greens and it became a real grind."
Just two players - Matthew Lowe of Richmond and Ryan Flick of Dayton - shot under-par, with both turning in 1-under 71s. Richmond and Dayton finished the day in a tie for first at 6-over par, while the Colonials are tied for fifth at 14-over.
Junior Lucas Farmer and sophomore Vince Palazzolo shot 78, with Palazzolo playing his best golf on the back nine when he made four birdies for a 35 coming in. Sophomore Jack Porcelli shot 81.
The Colonials will tee off in round two at 9 a.m. Saturday with both Cichan and Lowe looking to recapture their early momentum.
"I feel like I can take it low out there," said Cichan. "I think I proved that on the front nine, and I came away with a score overall that's not bad, but I'm definitely not happy with. Tomorrow I know I can shoot a low score and get right in the hunt."
"I went away from the game plan a few times today and it didn't work," said Lowe. "So I need to trust it and just dial in."
Players Mentioned
