Freshman Jason Millard, a Murfreesboro native, and senior Nick Bailes, who secured a spot in the team's lineup for the final four tournaments of the season, including the National Championships, only after teammate Craig Smith was sidelined for the season with a back injury, each shot even in Thursday's second round to put Middle Tennessee on the cusp of history.

Live scoring of the entire tournament and live video of the third and fourth rounds can be found on GolfStatResults.com. The same live video webstreaming can be found on Friday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. central time and Saturday from 8 a.m. to completion at NCAA.com.

The Blue Raiders tied for the fifth-best round of the day with a 5-over 293 to move into 11th place. Middle Tennessee is 13 shots off Clemson's lead of 13-over 589 after two rounds. The top 15 teams after Friday's third round make the cut for Saturday's final round.

The first-rate play of Bailes and Millard are big reasons Middle Tennessee is in such position.

"We came back strong in the second round and those two had a lot to do with it," Middle Tennessee first-year Head Coach Whit Turnbow said. "I can't say enough about the way our team fought today. Jason is a freshman and he's stepped up huge, and I'm so proud of Nick Bailes. It's such a great story and I couldn't think of a better way for a quality person to go out at Middle Tennessee. Those two were strong today but our team, as a whole, was just solid. Now we have to go out Friday and continue to take care of business."

While Bailes and Millard were impressive, junior Rick Cochran continued his fine work with a 1-over 73 and is tied for 17th among the 156-person field at 4-over 148 through two rounds. Junior Chas Narramore bounced back like a champion after shooting 8-over in the first round. He battled to a 4-over 76 Thursday, and Kent Bulle finished at 5-over.

Millard fired five birdies and was even on nine other holes on his way to another strong round. He played the front at 2-under and continued to show nerves of steel amongst the loaded field.

The savvy Millard said the Blue Raiders are proving their mettle at college golf's highest level.

"I think we are one of the top 10 teams in the nation and we are showing it at this tournament," Millard said. "All in all I had a good round today and was able to play well down the stretch. We have put ourselves in good position."

One of the tournament's biggest turnarounds was turned in by Bailes, who improved from 14-over 86 in the first round to even par in the second. He did so on the strength of a notable 3-under 33 on the front, including birdies on holes 2, 4 and 7 and narrow birdie misses on 8 and 9.

"I just tried to forget yesterday and go out and help the team today," Bailes said. "The team was in good shape and if we played a good round today we could do something toward making the cut and really sneak up toward the top of the leader board. I played awful (Wednesday) but it's a team sport and you just have to put it behind you and go. I was able to do that today."

Middle Tennessee will continue its inspiring run in the National Championships Friday at 7:07 a.m. (Central), along with playing partners Charlotte and Texas A&M.

NCAA National Championships
Kampen Course, Par-72
Second Round Team Scores
1 Clemson 201-288 589 +13
2 UCLA 297-293 590 +14
3 USC 297-294 591 +15
4 Florida 302-291 593 +17
5 Oklahoma State 298-296 594 +18
6 Washington 305-290 595 +19
7 Georgia 303-293 596 +20
8 Stanford 309-288 597 +21
9 Kent State 301-297 598 +22
10 Charlotte 306-295 601 +25
11 Middle Tennessee 309-293 602 +26
12 Texas A&M 309-294 603 +27
T13 Arizona State 311-293 604 +28
T13 Illinois 302-302 604 +28
15 Alabama 309-297 606 +30
16 Louisville 311-296 607 +31
17 UAB 311-297 608 +32
18 Auburn 306-304 610 +34
T19 Penn State 315-298 613 +37
T19 East Tennessee 313-300 613 +37
T19 San Diego State 310-303 613 +37
22 UC-Irvine 320-297 617 +41
23 Wake Forest 314-304 618 +42
T24 Virginia 312-307 619 +43
T24 Oregon 315-304 619 +43
26 Texas 311-309 620 +44
T27 Mississippi State 326-297 623 +47
T27 Indiana 313-310 623 +47
29 Augusta State 326-308 634 +58
30 St. Mary's (CA) 333-309 642 +66

11 MT Team Scores (602)
T17 Rick Cochran 75-73 148 +4
T24 Jason Millard 77-72 149 +5
T70 Kent Bulle 77-77 154 +10
T96 Chas Narramore 80-76 156 +12
T114 Nick Bailes 86-72 158 +14

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