BROOKLYN PARK, Minn. – The St. Olaf College men's golf team sat in a tie for fourth on a tightly-contested leaderboard following the opening round of the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Men's Golf Championships held on Saturday at Edinburgh USA.

Thanks, in part, to top-10 rounds on the day from junior Ike Vessey and senior Isaac Schmidt, St. Olaf shot a 303 (+15) to sit three shots off the pace of Concordia-Moorhead through 18 holes. The Oles' total put them in a tie with Carleton College, two shots behind Bethel University and Gustavus Adolphus College, who were tied for second. The top-seven teams in the nine-team field were separated by just 10 strokes through day one of the three-day tournament.

Vessey paced St. Olaf with a two-over 74 – his lowest round since his rookie season – to finish the round in a five-way tie for fourth. The junior led the field in par-four scoring (-2, 3.75) to help the Oles tie for the team lead in the category (+11, 4.28) on day one. Vessey's round was highlighted by an even-par 36 on the front nine and a pair of birdies on the back.

Schmidt joined Vessey in the top 10 in a tie for ninth with a three-over 75 that included three consecutive birdies on holes 3-5 after starting with back-to-back bogeys. The senior was even par on the par fours to rank in a tie for fourth in the field in the category.

Sophomore Will Black made it three Oles in the top 15 with a 76 (+4) that put him in a tie for 24th. Black played the par fives in two-under par and shot an even-par 36 on the back nine after a 40 on the front. Sophomore Ryan Herbst added St. Olaf's fourth counting score with a 78 (+6).

Play in round two will begin at 10:27 a.m. on Sunday, Sept. 28, with St. Olaf's tee times starting at 11:12 a.m. Junior Quinn Nevell will be the first Ole off on Sunday, followed in nine-minute increments by Herbst, Black, Schmidt, and Vessey.