ATHENS, GA--Winthrop's Kamito Hirai made a big move up the leaderboard on Friday as he shot 3-under par 68 during the second round of the 2012 NCAA Men's Golf Regional at the University of Georgia Golf Course in Athens.

That score propelled him from a tie for 64th place after his opening round into a tie for 26th place heading into Saturday's final round on the par 71, 7,253-yard hilly course layout. 

The junior from Summerville, SC played bogey free golf for the first 16 holes after his group teed off on Hole 10.  Hirai wound up with four birdies and one bogey which came on the No. 8 190-yard par 3.  Until that hole, he had moved into a tie for 19th place among the 75-player field.

"Our goal today was to play bogey free golf and Kamito did that until the next to last hole," said Winthrop head coach Kevin Pendley.  "He hit 16 out 18 greens and  really controlled the ball, stayed real  patient, and his iron play was as good as its been all year. 

"I'm proud of the way he played, but he still has an uphill climb.  If he can shoot another 68 or a 67 tomorrow, we'll take our chances.  The pin placements are going to ge tougher on Saturday and if we get the wind that we had today, the scores are probably going to go up," said Pendley.

Hirai is among 10 individual participants who were invited to the regional.  The top performer out of that group will go to the national finals May 29-June 3 at the Riviera Country Club in Pacific Palisades, CA.

His final tee time is set for 9:50 a.m. Saturday on Hole No. 1.