Morganton, N.C. - Stetson senior men's golfer Sam Ryder (Longwood, Fla.) shot a three under par 67, the low round of the day in the 64-golfer field, to move up the ladder and secure a fourth place finish in the season-opening Donald Ross Intercollegiate at Mimosa Hills Golf Club on Tuesday. Stetson finished 10th in the team standings.

Ryder was even par after the first 36 holes yesterday, when he shot 69-71, but used a 67 today to climb from a sixth place tie to solo fourth in the individual standings. Senior Micah Jacobsen (Fernandina Beach, Fla.) came in with a four over par 74 for a 31st place tie at 13 over par. The last three members of the five-man traveling squad for the Hatters struggled on the relatively short, hilly track on Tuesday as freshman Matt Taylor (Naples, Fla.), senior Andrew Schiano (Orlando, Fla.) and sophomore Ed Waller (Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.) shot 80, 83 and 86 respectively. Schiano and Taylor tied for 56th at +26 while Waller came in at 38 over par in a tie for 62nd.

2011 NCAA Division II national runner-up Lynn seized the team title at 13 over par, good for a five-stroke victory over Gardner-Webb. Presbyterian was a distant third at +30 with host Appalachian State (+31), Western Carolina (+31), High Point (+32), Radford (+39), George Washington (+53) and Elon (+54) finishing ahead of the Hatters (+62). Stetson managed to finish 70 strokes ahead of last place Maryland-Eastern Shore.

Gardner-Webb's Kristopher Gray and Presbyterian's Matt Sizemore tied for individual medalist honors at seven under par, three strokes ahead of Marcelo Rozo (Lynn) and four shots up on Ryder. High Point's Chase Wilson rounded out the top five at -2.

The Hatters will get right back to work this weekend when they play locally at the Mission Inn Collegiate Classic in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla. The 54-hole event runs Friday-Sunday.

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