MURRIETA, Calif. --- With the program hosting a tournament for the first time, Biola Men's Golf saw one of its own hold first place on the individual scoreboard after the first of three rounds in the person of senior Kyle McAbee.

McAbee got off to a fast start on the third hole of the Bear Creek Golf Course in Murrieta, California, with a birdie that started a good day for him on par-5 holes. Even in spite of a double bogey on nine, McAbee pulled back to go even-par on the four par-5 holes with an eagle two holes later to separate himself from the field. The senior accounting major finished the first round with a 77 to take a one-stroke lead Damian Quintanilla of Providence Christian College.

This start for McAbee bodes very well for him and Head Coach Cory Page's team because McAbee has a track-record of improving on his first round score in 54-hole tournaments. In the two three-round tournaments that the Eagles have played this year, McAbee's second and third rounds in both competitions were both better than his first.

Like McAbee, Austin Bishop and Dominic Ariondo also birdied the fourth hole early in their playthroughs on Sunday, helping the Eagles finish the round in third place and just five strokes behind Hawaii Pacific for first place.

Bishop sits in sixth place after carding an 80 in his first round for the Eagles' second-best score. He specifically took his game up a notch headed to the back nine, where he pared holes nine through 13 before concluding his round with a birdie on one.

Ariondo and Murrieta-native Kaden Page recorded Biola's third and fourth scores of the day with an 88 and 87, respectively.

The Eagles will return to the course for 8 a.m. and will play two rounds on Monday to chase for the Biola Spring Invitational title.