PLEASANTON—Michael Stephens shot 3-under par Monday, finishing the day in second place, and leading the Chico State men's golf team to a solid opening day on the links at the Bay Area Invitational hosted by Cal State East Bay at The Club at Ruby Hill in Pleasanton. Unfortunately, once they were off the links, an honest mistake meant that the Wildcats, who appeared to be in third place, were actually tied for seventh.

NOTE - This story was updated after it was originally posted when it was found late Monday night that Dakota Ochoa had inadvertently signed an incorrect scorecard following the second round.
 
Late Monday night it was discovered that Dakota Ochoa had inadvertently signed an incorrect scorecard following his round, meaning his score was disqualified and the Wildcats were forced to take the four remaining scores. Thus, instead of heading into Tuesday's final round in third place at 11-over par, they are in a tie for 7^th place at 22-over par. 
 
Cal State San Marcos sprinted away from the pack during the first two rounds of the event Monday, shooting a combined 5-under par. Western Washington is in second at 9-over par, followed by Sonoma State (+15), Holy Names (+16) and Cal State East Bay (+18). 
 
Cal State Monterey Bay (+19), Saint Martin's and Chico State (+22), Stanislaus State (+29), and Dominican (+30) round out the top 10 teams in the 14-team field, which features eight of the top-10-ranked teams in the NCAA West Region. Stanislaus State is No. 1, Western Washington No. 2, Chico State No. 4, Cal State San Marcos No. 5, Cal State Monterey Bay No. 7, Sonoma State No. 8, Holy Names No. 9, and Cal State East Bay No. 10. 
 
Stephens' first-round 68 matched the second lowest round of the day in the 84-player field. He followed it up with a 73 and at 3-under par is seven shots behind tournament leader Matt Pennington of Cal State San Marcos entering Monday's 8:30 a.m. shotgun start for the final round. Western Washington's Adam Thain is third at 2-under par, and there's a five-way tie for fourth at 1-under. 
 
Chico State's Chris Colla carded rounds of 70-75 to finish the day tied for 11^th at 1-over par. Tyler Ashman's second-round 73 was one of the better afternoon circuits and moved him up into a tie for 28^th overall at 6-over par. Mark Noonan and Brayden Russo (who is playing as an individual) are tied for 77^th at 20-over par. Ochoa shot a first-round 75 before his second-round DQ.
 
The Wildcats will tee off shotgun style from holes 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 Tuesday morning at 8:30. They are paired with Cal State East Bay, Cal State Monterey Bay, and Saint Martin's. Fans can follow the action via the live leaderboard link at the top of this page, on the men's golf schedule page, and in the calendar section on the homepage.

 
HELP US PACK THE PANTRY!
It's Chico State Athletics Pack the Pantry Week and we have set a big goal—10,000 items—which would break the record we set last year. We need your help to reach it. You can donate monetarily HERE and every dollar will count for two items. You can also drop off a donation at any of Chico State Athletics' 12 basketball, softball, and baseball games this weekend or at the Pantry itself Monday through Friday until 3 p.m., or by calling 530-898-4098 to make arrangements. Thank you for your support of Chico State's students, including student-athletes!