RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico --- The Georgia men’s golf team moved up one position on Monday in the second round of the Puerto Rico Classic.

After entering the day tied for sixth, the Bulldogs fired an even-par 288 to move to 1-over 577 and into fifth. Alabama has the team lead at 21-under 555.

Joey Garber, competing for the first time as a Bulldog since transferring from Michigan, paced the Bulldogs in the second round with a 2-under 70. Sam Straka added an even-par 72, while Keith Mitchell and T.J. Mitchell each signed for a 1-over 73. Nick Reach had the Bulldogs’ non-counting score of 4-over 76.

Garber moved into eighth in the individual race at 2-under 144, six shots behind Georgia Tech’s James White. Keith Mitchell is 14th at 1-under 143, followed by T.J. Mitchell and Reach at 4-over 148 and Straka at 5-over 149.

“Our guys really battled hard today, and that always make a coach proud,” Georgia coach Chris Haack said. “As competitors, you want to give it everything you’ve got whenever you’re on the course. Our young team will grow more and more experienced as we go forward. We want to make progress with every round, and I think we did that today.”

The Puerto Rico Classic, the Bulldogs’ first event of the spring, will conclude on Tuesday.