ORLANDO – Davidson and Dayton both shot a 300 in the first round to share the lead following the first day of competition at the Atlantic 10 Men’s Golf Championship at the Villas of Grand Cypress.

Dayton’s Tripp French leads the field with a one-under 71, while Rhode Island’s Brody King and Alister Balcombe of VCU are tied for second, each carding an even-par 72. Davidson’s Hoke Carlton and George Mason’s Eric Edwards, who were tied for fourth with a 73, rounded out the top five finishers.

Caleb Wolters and Domenic Maricocchi  each shot a 75 (tied for 11th) and Brendan Keating carded a 79 (tied for 30th) to round out the Flyers’ top four finishers.

Mike Blasey (74 – tied for sixth), Alex Ross (75 – tied for 11th) and defending A-10 medalist Jack Lang (78 – tied for 23rd) were the Wildcats’ top four scores.

VCU is in third after the first round with a 303, spurred by Balcombe’s 72. Defending champion Richmond is fourth, led by Andrew McInerney, who is tied for sixth with a 74.

George Mason and Saint Joseph’s (305) are tied for fifth, followed by Rhode Island in seventh (308) and Fordham in eighth (311). George Washington, St. Bonaventure and La Salle round out the field respectively.

Vince Palazzolo (GW), Wills Montgomery (Saint Joseph’s) and Joseph Trim (Fordham) all tied for sixth with a 74 to match McInerney and Blasey and fill in the top 10 individual finishes.

Blasey had five birdies to lead all golfers, while Lang, French and Jake Gilkison of Dayton each recorded four birdies. Wolters was the most consistent on the day, recording par 16 times.

Round two tee times begin Saturday at 7:30 am with La Salle and St. Bonaventure in a twosome. The other nine teams will play in threesomes. The final Saturday tee time is 10:21 am.