OLYMPIA FIELDS, Ill. – The #15 Pepperdine men's golf team is in the middle of the pack after the first round of the Fighting Illini Invitational at the par-70 Olympia Fields Country Club North Course.

After two players finished the round in the top-20, the Waves are tied for eighth.  Pepperdine is led by sophomore Mahanth Chirravuri who shot 2-under to tie for sixth after the first round.  In an impressive show, he amassed two birdies in a bogeyless 18 holes. 

There are three other programs tied for eighth with a score of 6-over 286.  Those teams, along with the Waves, are one stroke away from fifth place and three strokes away from fourth.  There are two teams a stroke behind Pepperdine to tie for 12^th and Michigan State is in last, having shot 15-over so far today.  Texas is in the lead with a 4-under 276.

PLAYER SCORES

• Sophomore Mahanth Chirravuri (Chandler, Ariz./Hamilton HS/USC) is tied for sixth after shooting a 2-under 68, having amassed two birdies in 18 holes.
• Sophomore Joshua Koo (Cerritos, Calif./Cerritos HS/Washington) is tied for 15^th with an even score of 70 in the first round.  He tallied five birdies, including three in the first four holes of his back nine.
• Freshman William Walsh (San Mateo, Calif./Junipero Serra HS) is tied for 35^th with a score of 72.  He marked two birdies, one on each the front and back nine.
• Sophomore Brady Siravo (Sacramento, Calif./Jesuit HS) is tied for 71^st after shooting 76, while freshman Kristoffer Kuvaas (Houston, Texas/The Village School) is tied for 75^th with a 77.

 
UP NEXT:
Pepperdine will begin on the 10^th hole tomorrow as well, this time paired with Purdue and Baylor.  The first tee time for the Waves tomorrow is 6:15 a.m. PT.

THE NUMBERS
Team Scores: 1. Texas 276; 2. Georgia Tech 277; 3. North Carolina 281; 4. Florida State 283; T5. Arizona State 285; T5. Illinois 285; T5. Alabama 285; T8. Pepperdine 286; T8. Arizona 286; T8. Florida 286; T8. Purdue 286; T12. Baylor 287; T12. Stanford 287; 14. Oklahoma State 290; 15. Michigan State 295.

Top Individuals: T1. Christo Lamprecht (Georgia Tech) 65; T1. Karl Vilips (Stanford) 65; T3. Jacob Sosa (Texas) 66; T3. Gray Albright (Florida State) 66; 5. Maxwell Ford (UNC) 67; T6. Mahanth Chirravuri (Pepperdine) 68; T6. Brian Stark. (Texas) 68; T6. Matthew Kress (Florida) 68; T6. Herman Sekne (Purdue) 68.