SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Another hot day on the par-70 Raptor Course at Grayhawk Golf Club challenged the Pepperdine men's golf team, but the Waves stayed tough and finished the second round in fifth place.

Only two teams shot below par this tournament so far and both of those rounds were today.  Pepperdine has a two-round score of 568 (281-287) and sits four strokes ahead of the team in eighth and nine shots ahead of the team in 15^th.  The top teams are all relatively close, as the Waves are two shots behind North Carolina and Georgia Tech who are tied for third and two strokes ahead of Vanderbilt in sixth.

The top 15 teams will advance after Sunday's third round, and the top eight teams after Monday's fourth round will qualify for match play. 
The two-time national champions have advanced to the NCAA finals for the fourth-consecutive time and for the 13^th time overall.

PLAYER SCORES

• Graduate Luke Gifford (Boca Raton, Fla./South Florida) is tied for 19^th after amassing a two-round score of 141 (70-71).  He rallied from a bogey on the first hole to remain untarnished through the rest of the second round, ending 1-over.  He posted four birdies in the first round of the tournament.
• Graduate Sam Choi (Anaheim, Calif./New Mexico) is tied for 24^th with a two-day score of 142 (70-72).  He marked two birdies on a flawless front nine today, and has compiled five birdies at the championships thus far.
• Graduate Roberto Nieves (Miami, Fla./Delaware) is tied for 36^th with a score of 143 (68-75).  He had five birdies in his first round yesterday and tabbed another one on the 10^th today.
• Senior William Mouw (Chino, Calif./Ontario Christian HS) is tied for 42^nd with a score of 144 (73-71).  He opened his second round with a pair of birdies on the second and third holes and finished with three overall.
• Graduate Derek Hitchner (Minneapolis, Minn./The Blake School) has a two-round total of 146 (73-73) to sit tied for 67^th.  He leads the team with 11 birdies so far, including five in the second round today.

UP NEXT:
Pepperdine will be paired with Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt for the third round, teeing off from the 10^th hole at 6:32 a.m.

THE NUMBERS
Team Scores: 1. Illinois 558; 2. Florida 561; T3. North Carolina 566; T3. Georgia Tech 566; 5. Pepperdine 568; 6. Vanderbilt 570; T7. Florida State 571; T7. Virginia 571; T9. Alabama 572; T9. Arizona State 572; T11. Auburn 574; T11. Texas A&M 574; T13. Georgia 576; T13. Stanford 576; T13. BYU 576; 16. Texas Tech 577; T17. Colorado 579; T17. San Francisco 579; 19. Oklahoma 580; T20. Arkansas 582; T20. Ohio State 582; 22. Oregon 583; 23. Mississippi State 586; 24. Texas 587; 25. New Mexico 589; 26. Duke 590; 27. Chattanooga 594; 28. Colorado State 595; 29. East Tennessee State 600; 30. Baylor 601.

Top Individuals: 1. Ross Steelman (Georgia Tech) 133; T2. Daniel Rodrigues (Texas A&M) 136; T2. A. Dumont de Chassar (Illinois) 136; 4. Fred Biondi (Florida) 137; T5. Neal Shipley (Ohio State) 138; T5. Dylan Menante (UNC) 138; T5. Matthew Watkins (UNM) 138; T8. 5 players tied.