PALM DESERT, Calif. – Hiroki Miya and Caleb Hicks both posted under-par performances in the 2nd round of the Wyoming Desert Intercollegiate on Thursday from the Classic Club Course, helping the UT Arlington men's golf team make a move up the leaderboard.
 
After challenging scoring conditions for the entire field on Wednesday, Thursday yielded slightly easier conditions as Miya recorded a 2-under 70 and Hicks a 1-under 71 to elevate UTA from an 11th-place overnight position to 9th on the 16-team leaderboard following a 292 (+4) 2nd round – a seven-stroke improvement from the opening round.
 
All told, UTA sits just six shots out of 6th place entering Friday's final round with a 591 (+15) 36-hole total. Host Wyoming leads the tournament at 569 (-7) – six shots clear of 2nd-place Utah (575, -1) as those are the only teams in the event under par on the par-72, 7,305-yard layout.
 
UTA SCORES
Team
9) UT Arlington: 299-292: 591 (+15)
 
Lineup
T-10) Caleb Hicks: 73-71: 144 (E)
T-19) Hiroki Miya: 75-70: 145 (+1)
T-41) Daniel Cronje: 76-73: 149 (+5)
T-58) Zak Jones: 75-78: 153 (+9)
T-76) Alberto Menacho: 78-81: 159 (+15)
 
INSIDE THE SCORES
HICKS
Hicks was able to build off his solid opening round on Wednesday as the senior recorded a team-high-tying five birdies. Beginning on the 10th hole like the rest of his teammates, he opened with a bogey, but recorded three birdies going out for a 34 (-2) and added another on the par-3 2nd to get his card to -3. However, a double on the 220-yard, par-3 6th and a bogey on the par-4 8th erased that before he finished with a birdie on the par-5 9th.
 
MIYA
The junior transfer was the Mavs most consistent player in the 2nd round as he notched 14 pars, three birdies and just one bogey. After eight-straight pars to begin his round, his lone square of the day came on the par-5 18th. That was quickly erased with a birdie on the par-4 1st, and he added two more over his closing three holes – on the par-4 7th and 9th – to post an inward 3-under 33.
 
CRONJE
The South African had an adventurous round as he began his first five holes with two doubles, two birdies and a bogey. Sitting at +3, he carded two more birdies and two bogeys over the next 10 holes to remain 3-over with three holes to play. A bogey on the 7th pushed him to +4, but a hole-out eagle – the first of the tournament for the Mavs – on the par-4, 416-yard 8th was followed by a birdie on the 9th as he played the final two holes in -3 to post a solid 1-over 73.
 
JONES
The senior struggled to build off his 1st round with a 78 on Thursday. He sat at -1 through three holes, but five bogeys over the next seven holes moved his card to +4. Jones got one back with a birdie on the par-5 4th, but returned it on the next hole and an unfortunate double on the 7th capped his round.
 
MENACHO
In the 2nd round, the Peruvian was unable to get anything going as he recorded his only birdie on his final hole – the 595-yard 9th. He was just +3 with five holes to play, but went bogey-bogey-triple-double before that closing birdie.
 
THIS AND THAT
The field scoring average for the 1st round was 75.54 and lowered about half a shot to 75.03 for the 2nd round … UTA currently ranks 5th in the field in par-5 scoring average (4.83, -7) … Jones and Cronje are both tied for 7th in par-3 scoring (2.88, -1) … Cronje and Hicks lead the Mavs in birdies with seven, just three off the lead … Miya is currently tied for the 4th-most pars in the tournament with 25.
 
NEXT UP
The final round of the 54-hole event will take place on Friday with a 10 a.m. Central (8 a.m. local Pacific) shotgun start. Live scoring will be available via Golfstat.
 
FOLLOW THE MAVS SOCIALLY
For up-to-date news, photos and videos of the UTA men's golf program, follow us on Twitter: @UTAMavsMGolf, Instagram: @UTAMavsMGolf and Facebook: /UTAMavsMGolf.
 
ABOUT TEXAS RANGERS GOLF CLUB
Opened in February of 2019, the state-of-the-art Texas Rangers Golf Club is the new home of UTA's men's and women's golf programs. The world's only Major League Baseball-branded golf course, TRGC is the result of a $24 million renovation and updated routing of the former Chester W. Ditto Golf Course.
 
The Home of UTA Golf was designed by UTA alumni John Colligan and Trey Kemp of Arlington-based Colligan Golf Design. It features an expansive 23-acre practice area, and a new 33,871-square-foot clubhouse features a full-service restaurant and bar, covered patio overlooking the golf course, pro shop, locker rooms and numerous rental and event spaces. For more information about TRGC, click here.