May 8, 2009

After firing a 5-under-par 67, Armen Kirakossian took the lead in the Division I men's standings while Maria Jose Camey shot a 1-under-par 71 to lead the Division I women's standings this Friday (May 8) afternoon at the 23rd Annual PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Championship at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, FL.

The Lady Broncs fired a one-round score of 307 to place them in first, while last year's champions, Bethune-Cookman, trail the Lady Broncs by eight strokes. The men's team concluded day one in third-place as they tallied a score of 291. The Broncs trail Bethune-Cookman by four-strokes, while Tennessee State stands in second by a score of 288.

The Lady Broncs took the top-two spots in the women's division with MJ Camey in first with a score of 71 and Haley Hocott in second with a score of 74.

Seniors Mariale Camey and Bronwyn Sandberg are tied for sixth as they fired a first-round score of 81.

Freshman Sarah Kothny trails the seniors by five strokes with a score of 86.

"The girls went in confident, put the pressure on and played consistent, which is key, and tomorrow we just need to be consistent. The girls are still on the adrenaline rush from conference and that helped them play hard and well today," said Director of Men and Women's Golf Ofelia Lopez. "If they play the way they played today, there is no reason why we can't win."

The men finished with two Broncs in the top-10 with Armen Kirakossian taking the top spot with a 5-under-par 67 and senior Shane Pearce in 10th with a 1-under-par 71.

Orlando Moreno finished day one with a score of 76, while A.J. Gonzalez and High Wongchindawest finished a stroke apart with scores of 77 and 78 respectively.

"We are feeling really good and everyone feels confident. We got a couple of good rounds in with Armen and Shane and the rest of the guys stepped it up and now we are only four strokes from the lead," said Head Men's Coach Santiago De Larrea.

The men and women continue tomorrow (May 9) morning with round two as they tee-off at 7:30 a.m. ET at the PGA Golf Club in Port St. Lucie, FL.

UTPA Sports Information