The first day of match play at the Oregon Amateur Golf Championships was a good one for the top seeds and a pair of South Coast golfers Wednesday at Bandon Dunes.

Both Marie Simonds of Coquille and Jesse Schutte of Florence won their opening matches to advance in the 100th Oregon Amateur.

Simonds had a great round against University of Oregon golfer Avery Sills, with five birdies. She was 2-under par when she finished the match on the 16th hole, winning 4 and 2 over the No. 11 seed.

Simonds birdied the first three holes, though she only won two of them because Sills eagled the third hole. Sills rallied to take the lead in the match on the eighth hole, but Simonds won four of the last five holes to advance to the round of 16.

Her next foe is No. 6 seed Charisse Spada of Portland, a two-time Oregon Amateur champion, who beat Avery Collura 5 and 3.

With a win today, Simonds would advance to the quarterfinals, and possibly semifinals, on Friday. The 36-hole final is Saturday.

The top nine women’s seeds all won their opening matches Wednesday. They include top seed Kendra Little, defending champion Kate Hildahl, and 60-year-old Sandy Woodruff, the 2006 California Women’s State Champion.

Schutte, the No. 18 seed on the men’s side, was able to enjoy a dominant 7 and 6 win over Matthew Schuth.

The three-time state champion for Siuslaw High School birdied three holes Wednesday and was 2-under when the match ended after 12 holes.

It was the largest margin of victory Wednesday, though top seed Kevin Beavers, a former University of Portland standout, and Oregon State star Paul Peterson both won their matches 6 and 5.

Both Coos Bay resident Tim Tucker and former Southwestern Oregon Community College golfer Justin Kadin were eliminated Wednesday.

The highest seeded golfer among the men to lose was No. 4 Ian Dahl, who fell 1-up to Colin Tucker. No. 2 seed Armen Kirakossian needed 21 holes to beat Todd Strible, who birdied four of the final seven holes to extend the match.

The men’s field will be reduced to eight golfers today. Schutte will play No. 15 seed Jeff Nielson this morning, with the winner facing either Kirakossian or No. 31 Jeff Petroff this afternoon.

As with the women, the quarterfinals and semifinals are Friday, with the 36-hole final on Saturday.