Western Carolina second at Golfweek Program Challenge
PAWLEY’S ISLAND, S.C. – Led by sophomore Taylor Allison in a four-way tie for sixth place, Western Carolina put all five golfers inside the individual top 20 to sit in second place after the opening round of the 2013 Golfweek Program Challenge being contested at the par-71, 6,038-yard Caledonia Golf & Fish Club. The Catamounts posted a team 293 on Sunday, just three strokes off the team lead.
Coupled with the WCU men's team score of 290, Western Carolina stands tied for second in the Program Challenge portion of the event with a combined score of 583, knotted with Jacksonville State. James Madison holds a collective five-stroke advantage with scores of 280 on the men's side and 298 on the women's for a total of 578.
Allison posted a 1-over par 72 on Sunday to lead the squad. Transfer sophomore Kim Mitchell carded 14 pars on her first round for the Purple & Gold on Sunday, countering three bogeys with a birdie on the par-4 seventh to shoot 2-over 73.
Sophomores Mariah Hopkins and Kristin Swindell and freshman Olivia Landino stand tied for 14th overall with 3-over 74s.
Led by individual leader Lisbeth Brooks at 2-under par 69, defending Program Challenge champion Campbell leads the 12-team women's field by three strokes over the Catamounts with a 290 opening round.
Play continues Monday and Tuesday in the season-opening event with live scoring available through GolfStatResults.com.
Furman tied for 11th at Cougar Classic
HANAHAN, S.C. – Furman rookie Taylor Totland fired a 72 to tie for 19th place, leading the Paladins Sunday in the first day of the Cougar Classic, hosted by the College of Charleston at the par-72, 6,402-yard Yeamans Hall Club. Furman sits in a tie for 11th place after day one.
Totland, playing her first collegiate round, parred the first 10 holes before bogeying No. 11. She recovered with birdies on No. 14 and No. 15 then bogeyed the final hole for an even 72. The Tinton Falls, N.J., native is six strokes back of the leaders, NC State’s Brittany Marchand and Mississippi State’s Ally McDonald, who each shot a 66, tying for the second-lowest round in the 11-year history of the Cougar Classic.
Paladin sophomore Valentina Romera (+2) birdied No. 13, a par-3, to card a 74 in Sunday’s opening round, while junior Laura DeMarco, senior Ingunn Gunnarsdottir, and sophomore Stephanie Carlozzi each recorded 4-over 76s on Sunday.
Mississippi State holds a three-stroke lead with a 6-under 282. South Carolina and Clemson are tied for second place at 3-under par entering Monday’s second round.
Second-round play of the 54-hole tournament, which features four teams ranked in the Golf World/WGCA Coaches’ Preseason Division I Poll, begins Monday at 8 a.m., and the tournament will conclude Tuesday with a 9 a.m. shotgun start.
The Paladins will tee off at 12:35 p.m. on Monday from hole No. 1. Admission to the tournament is free and fans are welcome. Live tournament scoring will also be available via www.golfstat.com.
UNCG 19th at Cougar Classic
HANAHAN, S.C. – The UNCG women's golf team opened the 2013 season Sunday afternoon with the first round of the 11th annual Cougar Classic hosted by the College of Charleston at Yeamans Hall Golf Course.
The Spartans will tee off round two of the 54-hole event Monday at 8:45 a.m.
The Spartans enter the season as a young team with no seniors and sent a five-member lineup that includes two freshmen, two sophomores and a junior. UNCG sits in 19th place after the first 18 holes as it posted a team score of 314, while Mississippi State leads the event with a 282 with South Carolina and Clemson tied for second at 285.
Junior Berglind Bjornsdottir turned in the Spartans' top score of the day as she posted a 4-over par 76 to sit in a tie for 61st place. Sophomore Lily Crane added a 5-over 77 to place 76th and classmate Sammie Buchanan is in 82nd place with a 6-over par 78. Both Crane and Bjornsdottir were just 1-over par through the first nine holes of the round.
A pair of freshmen in Kristin Powers and Margine Arguello made their collegiate debuts Sunday. Powers was only 4-over par through the first nine holes and finished with an 83, while Arguello posted an 85.