The 11th-ranked Hope College men's golf team checked the first box on its to-do list this week in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Make the 36-hole cut at the NCAA Division III Championships.
Despite stormy weather and two difficult golf courses, the Flying Dutchmen are tied for eighth place after the first two rounds at Grandover Resort and are among 18 teams playing on Thursday and Friday. At 16-over-par, Hope is within 14 strokes of first-place Guilford (N.C.) College and seven strokes of fifth-place University of Texas at Tyler.
"I'm very proud," head coach Scott Lokers said after his team shot his second consecutive team score of 296 on Wednesday. "We're pleased we made our first goal and made the cut. It was a challenge - weather, courses set up a bit on the difficult side. We're pleased with being able to play two more rounds."
The Flying Dutchmen made the 18-team cut at nationals for the second consecutive season. They finished a program-best sixth in the nation as a team in 2017.
Hope will tee off at 7:30 a.m. Thursday for the third round. The remainder of the tournament will be played on the East Course, where the Flying Dutchmen's second round was held.
On Tuesday, Hope first had to finish the opening round that was suspended Monday due to weather. Five Flying Dutchmen needed to complete between one and four holes.
After a short break, Hope returned to competition for the second round.
Junior Josh Gibson of Grandville, Michigan (Grandville HS) fired a bogey-free, 5-under-par round of 67 during the second round. The 2017 individual Division III national champion recorded five birdies for the lowest second round in the 42-team field.
Gibson, pictured at left, rose 33 spots to a fourth-place tie in the individual standings. At 3-under, he is two strokes off the lead.
"He played really well today," Lokers said. "The way he finished the first round carried over to the second round. It was just solid, some outstanding playing. It came at a really good time for him and for us as a team."
Junior Andrew Goble of Brighton, Michigan (Brighton) carded a 1-over 73 during the second round. Goble, pictured at right, is tied for 23rd individual at 2-over.
Sophomore Daniel Settecerri of Bloomfield Hills, Michigan (Bloomfield Hills) is at 6-over for the tournament after a second-round 78. In his first NCAA Championship tournament, he led the Flying Dutchmen with a first-round 72.
"They were the first off. They set the tone for the team," Lokers said of Goble and Settecerri. "We had a chance to regroup after the delay and come out fresh this morning. Andrew played really well again this afternoon. This is Daniel's first experience at nationals. To go out and shoot how he did is just outstanding."
Senior Kade Hoeksema of Byron Center, Michigan (South Christian) chipped in a second-round 78. Junior Ben Kramer of Spring Lake, Michigan (Spring Lake) had an 84.
Josh Gibson Post-Match Interview
