North Plains, Ore. - The Willamette Men's Golf team finds itself tied for third place overall after the opening round of the Boxer Invitational hosted by Pacific University.  The team posted a 10-over par total of 294 and is tied with both George Fox University and the host school, Pacific.  Alexander Papajohn led the way for Willamette with an even-par 71 and is in fourth place in the overall standings.

A strong final nine holes helped the Bearcats move into the third-place tie, only one stroke behind second-place Bellevue College.  Papajohn and Paxton Jones each carded four birdies in their final nine holes, and Oliver Smith added two more to help the team collectively shoot two-under par on the back nine.  

Brock Olson was just two strokes behind Papajohn, shooting a two-over 73, and is in 12th place, while Smith is one stroke back at +3 and in 13th place.  Jones rounded out the scoring members of the top five by shooting a 76.  Connor Murphy was one stroke behind Jones with an opening round of 77.

The Bearcats entered four players as individuals in the competition, meaning they were not able to contribute to the team score.  Jack Carr led the way for that group with a 75, followed by Benedikt Morsch at 76, Kyler Phillips with 79, and Lucas Paul at 84.

Round two of the Boxer Invitational will take place on Sunday, March 9th, at Pumpkin Ridge Golf Club.  Tee times are scheduled for 9:00 am.