State Fights Through First Round, Sits Tied For Second

Saturday, October 19

Biloxi, Miss. (Fallen Oak GC)

Mississippi State

Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational

FAYETTEVILLE, AR - September 30, 2024 - Mississippi State's Josep Serra during the Blessings Collegiate Invitational at Blessings Golf Club in Fayetteville, AR. Photo By Wesley Hitt

Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics

State Fights Through First Round, Sits Tied For Second

October 19, 2024 | Men's Golf

Results (PDF)

By: Brian Ogden, Associate Director/Communications

BILOXI, Miss. – No. 22 Mississippi State sits in a tie for second place following the opening round at the Fallen Oak Collegiate Invitational. The Bulldogs shot a 1-over 289 on a day that saw just one team, Georgia, and 12 individuals finish below par. MSU is two shots back of the lead after 18 holes.

Josep Serra led the way for State, shooting a 1-under 71 for his team-leading fifth par or better round of the young season. The senior carded back-to-back birdies on Nos. 7 and 8 before grabbing a third birdie on Hole 13. A double-bogey on No. 18 closed his round and left him in a tie for fourth.

Drew Wilson collected a team-leading four birdies to finish the opening round at even par and tied for 13th.

"I thought we managed our games very well," head coach Dusty Smith said. "We made a good number of pars and were very steady as a team today. We need to stay focused on us and what makes us successful. I thought all five of our guys did a good job of battling today."

Saturday saw the Bulldogs play in very different fashions on the front nine and back nine. Serra was 2-under at the turn, but one over on the back nine. Dain Richie shot even through nine holes, and Ugo Malcor was 1-under thanks to a birdie on Hole 6. However, Richie and Malcor both carded a pair of bogeys on the back nine.

Garrett Endicott and Wilson played in the opposite fashion. Endicott was 2-over at the turn but carded a birdie on No. 15 to get a stroke back. Wilson, who was also 2-over at the turn, birdied three times in a four-hole span across Nos. 12-15. Endicott, Richie and Malcor all closed the day at 1-over. They are tied for 22nd.

Harrison Davis, who was playing as an individual, finished the round at 2-over and tied for 29th. Freshman Trip Duke made his collegiate debut on Saturday.

Duke leads things off for MSU at 10:40 a.m. CT on Sunday from Hole 10, followed by Davis at 11 a.m. The team will head out from the No. 1 tee at 11:10 a.m. Live results will be available on Golfstat.

For more information on the Bulldog men's golf program, follow on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram by searching "HailStateMG."