ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Seniors Lee Hodges and Jonathan Hardee finished the day among the top-10 individuals to carry the sixth-ranked Alabama men's golf team through the opening 18 holes of the 2018 SEC Men's Golf Championship on Wednesday afternoon. The Crimson Tide ended the day in fifth overall with a team total of 3-over par 283 on the par-70, 7,005-yard Sea Island Golf Club Seaside Course layout.

The top eight teams after 54 holes will advance to the match play portion of this year's championship. The second round will take place Thursday morning with Friday being the conclusion of stroke play. The quarterfinals will tee off Saturday morning and the semifinals will begin that same afternoon. The Championship match will take place on Sunday morning and will be televised live on SEC Network.

Hodges continued his stellar play during the spring season, as he ended the day in a tie for second overall with a 2-under par 68. It is the 13th time in his last 16 rounds played that the Ardmore, Tenn., native scored par or better and the 12th time this year he has recorded a round in the 60s, which is tied for tops on the team.

Meanwhile, Hardee is in a tie for eighth overall heading into Thursday's second round after carding a 1-under 69 – his best round of the spring season. The Greer, S.C., native collected 10 straight bogey-free holes to begin the day on the way to matching Hodges team low of four birdies on the day.

Junior Davis Riley and freshman Wilson Furr are tied for 36th after both shot rounds of 3-over par 73, while freshman Davis Shore is in a tie for 44th at 4-over par 74.

Fourth-ranked Vanderbilt holds the clubhouse lead after carding a 4-under par 276 on Wednesday. Tennessee, ranked No. 50, and Auburn, ranked No. 9, are tied for second at even par 280, followed by No. 11 LSU (281) and Alabama to round out the top five teams.

Alabama will tee off the second round at 7:20 a.m. CT off Hole No. 1 and will be paired alongside LSU and Kentucky. Live scoring throughout this year's tournament can be found at www.Golfstat.com.

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