GRAND FORKS — The North Dakota Golf Association Match Play Championship got underway Friday at Grand Forks Country Club, and two of the top four golfers lost in the first round of match play.

The second-best golfer, Justin Redding of Minot, and the fifth-best Max Palmer of Bottineau, the North Dakota Class B state champion and ND Mr. Golf finalist, both lost in the first round of the Open championship competition.

Redding scored 2-under in the qualifying round to secure second place, while Palmer scored 1-under to retain fourth place.

Gehrig Geiss, a golfer at Jamestown, defeated Redding, and Geiss will face Carson Skarperud of Grand Forks on Saturday morning. Skarperud will play golf at UND in the fall.

Logan Schoepp of Bemidji State, ranked No. 29, defeated Palmer. Schoepp will face Zach Hinschberger of UND in the second round on Saturday morning.

Hinschberger faced Grand Forks native Cole Hanson, who switched from college hockey to play collegiate golf at Mercer University in Macon, Ga., in the first round. Hanson shot 3-over in the qualifying round.

Duane Wages, the highest-ranked Grand Forks player at No. 5, advanced to the second round. Wages is a volunteer assistant coach for UND men’s golf, and he played golf at the collegiate level at Idaho and UND.

Top-seeded Evan Booth, a Fargo South graduate and University of Mary golfer, advanced to face Bemidji State’s Koby Kuenzel on Saturday morning.

Eric Hylden/Grand Forks Herald

UND golfers Nate Peyerl and Grayson Wetch also advanced. Peyerl defeated Grand Forks’ Saylor Kuenzel to advance.

Wetch defeated Marion Hernandez in the first round.

Grand Forks Red River’s Ross Koerner, who is ranked eighth, defeated Carson Harrington to advance.

Eric Hylden/Grand Forks Herald