PLYMOUTH, Ind. - The Iowa Central men's golf team pushed through some early-round struggles here Tuesday in the second round of the NJCAA Div. II Championship.

The Tritons followed up their 288 on Monday with a 295, sitting third behind South Mountain and Parkland.

Justin Schipper was the first to complete his second 18 holes, carding an even-par 72 for the second consecutive day. That included three birdies and a closing nine of 35. He had just one bogey, one double-bogey and 13 pars on his round. 

Tomas Ribeiro, who had a 69 on Monday, overcame a tough stretch to finish with a 77. He had a double-bogey and two bogeys on the front-nine, coming back with a pair of birdies and four more pars on the back. 

Austin Erickson carded a 73, one stroke better than his opening round score. His round included three birdies, with two coming within a three-hole stretch on the front. Erickson also had 11 pars, including five in a row between No. 7 and No. 11. 

Joe Forsting wrapped things up through 36 holes with a 74 that included back-to-back birdies on No. 17 and 18. He had a 1-under 35 on his second nine, recording 12 pars overall on the day. 

Liam Ross finished his round with a 76, improving two shots off his opening day score. He had a birdie on the front-nine and two more on the back, including a strong finish to his day with two birdies and two pars on his final four holes.

"(Tuesday) was a rollercoaster-type of day for us," Iowa Central head coach Kris Graewin said. "We played with some guys that were lighting it up and we got off to a bit of a slow star.  I couldn't be more proud of how we finished our rounds.

"Those finishes by Justin, Joe and Liam were huge for us to give us a fighting chance. We'll get rested up and recharge the batteries for Thursday. It's nice to know that we haven't played great yet and knowing we still have two more rounds to do so."

In the first round, Ribeiro fired a 69 to lead the team to a 288 and second place standing in the team race. Forsting shot a 73, Erickson a 74 and Ross a 78. 

Schipper is at even-par through two rounds followed by Ribeiro (2-over), Erickson (2-over), Forsting (3-over) and Ross (10-over). 

South Mountain had a 286 and sits first at 573, three strokes ahead of Parkland. Iowa Central has a team total of 576 through 36 holes of play. 

Action continues Thursday and Friday with the final two rounds of play.

-By Dana Becker