Elon wins JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational
ORANGE PARK, Fla. – A final-round 299, the lowest round posted by any team on day three, propelled the Elon women's golf team to a first-place finish at the JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational on Sunday. The Phoenix claimed its first team title since September 2010 with a three-round mark of 892 (293-300-299).
Despite winds that were consistently near 20 miles per hour, with gusts up to 35 mph, the Phoenix's final round was eight strokes better than its nearest competitor during the final round. Elon entered the final round four strokes back of the leader and in third place but won the event by four strokes over 60th-ranked Georgia State (292-297-307=896).
Elon's last tournament title came at the Sea Trail Intercollegiate played Sept. 24-26, 2010, in Sunset Beach, N.C.
The Phoenix's Emily Brooks and Kathryn Buckingham led the team in the final standings. The duo tied for eighth with a final mark of 222. Brooks (69-78-75), who posted one of just three eagles in the tournament on her final hole of the third round, finished the event with 39 pars. Buckingham had four of her seven birdies over her final 18 holes.
Of the 93 players in the field, Sunna Vidisdottir placed in a tie for 13th with a final score of 223 (75-69-79). Vidisdottir also had seven birdies over her three rounds, including one during Sunday's final round.
Kelsey Badmaev carded her best round of the weekend on Sunday, shooting an even-par 72 to tie for 20th with a 225 (76-77-72). Badmaev was tied for second in the field with eight birdies, four of which came on Sunday despite the windy conditions.
In a tie for 50th was Katie Partridge. Partridge shot a 235 (76-79-80) over the three-day event. She had three birdies over her 54 holes.
Taylor Wilkerson competed as an individual and finished in a tie for 48th with a 234 (79-74-81). She notched one birdie in each of her three rounds.
Medalist honors went to Tiffany Chan of Daytona State College. Chan finished the tournament with a 215 (73-71-71).
Behind Elon and Georgia State in the top five were Delaware (899), Southern Illinois (901) and Daytona State (903).
The Phoenix will next play at the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate hosted by Georgia State on March 30-April 1 in Stockbridge, Ga.
Samford finishes sixth at JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational
ORANGE PARK, Fla. – The Samford University women’s golf team closed out the 2014 JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational with a sixth-place finish Sunday as the Bulldogs posted a final 54-hole score of 906 (303-293-310) at the 16-team event being held at Eagle Landing Golf Club.
Individually, Samford true freshman Sydney Needham carded a three-round tally of 5-over-par 221 (75-70-76) and garnered a seventh-place finish at the 93-competitor event.
Needham finished just six strokes behind individual medalist Tiffany Chan of Daytona State College. Chan won the tournament by three strokes over second-place Maria Palacios from Georgia State.
Samford’s Natalie Mitchell concluded the three-day competition with a 54-hole score of 227 (74-73-80), while Bailey Gray notched a 229 (75-75-79) and Alex Jasper posted a three-round mark of 230 (79-75-76). Jasper’s final-round tally of 76 on Sunday proved to be the Bulldogs’ best score of the day.
True freshman Arin Eddy turned in her best round of the tournament Sunday as she posted a final-round tally of 79. Eddy closed out the competition with a 54-hole total of 244 (83-82-79).
The Samford University women’s golf team will next be in action March 23-24, as the Bulldogs head to Hilton Head Island, S.C., for the Low Country Intercollegiate, which will be held at the Moss Creek Plantation Golf Course.
Western Carolina finishes seventh at JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational
ORANGE PARK, Fla. – Western Carolina concluded its two-tournament swing through the Sunshine State on Sunday, finishing seventh overall at the JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational on a windy final day at the par-72, 6,282-yard Eagle Landing Golf Club. Sunday's finish represented the seventh top-10 finish for the Catamounts on the year.
Sophomore Kristin Swindell led the Catamounts in the tournament, posting her best round of the event - and the second-best of her first year at WCU - with a 1-under-par 71 to shoot 220 and finish among a three-way tie for fourth place.
Sophomore Mariah Hopkins continued her charge to the front of the field, advancing eight spots to record her best individual finish since early in the fall by placing in a five-way tie for 26th overall. Hopkins shot 2-over 74 on Sunday for a three-day total of 226, her career-best 54-hole score.
WCU's top golfer after the first round, sophomore Kim Mitchell finished tied for 35th overall with a three-round score of 229. Rounding out the Catamounts' scoring five was sophomore Taylor Allison in a tie for 57th at 236 and freshman Olivia Landino in a tie for 74th at 244.
Playing unattached as individuals, WCU freshman Ashley Thompson finished tied for 44th at 233 after a final round, 4-over-par 76 and classmate Bethany Galloway was tied for 74th at 244. Galloway matched Hopkins for the team high with seven birdies over the 54-hole tournament.
Western Carolina returns to action at the Low Country Intercollegiate, hosted by Wofford at the Moss Creek Golf Club - the site of the 2014 SoCon Women's Golf Championship in mid-April. WCU looks to defend its team championship from the event at the Hilton Head Island, S.C., venue. Hopkins finished third as WCU put two amongst the top five individual finishers in a four-stroke team victory.
Wofford ties for eighth at JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational
ORANGE PARK, Fla. – Junior Lauren Dunbar and sophomore Maegan Higgins earned top-10 finishes, highlighting the Wofford women's golf team's eighth-place finish on Sunday at the JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational.
Dunbar and Higgins each tied for eighth place, completing the tournament with a three-round total of 6-over-par 222. Dunbar shot a 4-over 76 on Sunday, birdieing two of her last five holes to climb into the top 10. Higgins drained a birdie down the stretch, as well, carding a 3-over 75 on her final round.
Freshman Katy Funk matched Higgins' 3-over 75, marking Wofford's low round of the day. Funk had three birdies, including back-to-back birdies on holes seven and eight. Funk tied for 35th overall at 13-over 229.
As a team, the Terriers tied for eighth place with Florida Gulf Coast. Wofford carded a 19-over 307 on Sunday, completing the tournament with a 49-over 913.
The Wofford women's golf team hosts the Low Country Intercollegiate next Sunday and Monday at the Moss Creek Golf Club, South Course.
UNCG 14th at JMU/Eagle Landing Invitational
ORANGE PARK, Fla. – UNCG sophomore women’s golfer Sammie Buchanan finished tied for 13th to lead the Spartans in the JMU/Eagle Invitational on Sunday at the Eagle Landing Golf Club. UNCG finished the three-day, 54-hole event in 14th place overall as a team.
Buchanan continued her strong spring play, notching her second top-15 finish with a 13th-place showing this weekend with a 7-over-par 223. She opened the tournament with an even-par 72 Friday before carding a 2-over-par 74 Saturday and finishing with a 5-over-par 77 Sunday when conditions consisted of 35 mph winds on the course. Tiffany Chan of Dayton State College won the individual title with a 1-under-par 215 (73-71-71) and was one of two players under par in the tough conditions Sunday.
Junior Berglind Bjornsdottir finished the tournament tied for 50th place overall with a 19-over-par 235. She opened the three-day event with a career-low score of 3-under par 69 before carding back-to-back scores of 83 in the final two rounds.
Freshman Kristin Powers rallied from a tough opening round score of 83 to finish tied for 57th with a 20-over-par 236. Powers rebounded from the first round and fired a 5-over-par 77 in round two before notching the Spartans’ lowest score of the day Sunday with a 4-over-par 76. Her final-round score of 76 tied her career low, set previously in the second round of the Starmount Forest Tournament.
The Spartans finished the event with a three-round score of 937 (306-316-315) to finish in 14th place overall. Elon rallied to win the event with an 892 (293-300-299), surpassing Georgia State (896) on the final day.
UNCG returns to action March 28-30 as it co-hosts the prestigious Bryan National with Wake Forest at Bryan Park Country Club. The 54-hole event will hold 18 holes each day on the Greensboro, N.C., course.
Furman finishes 13th at SunTrust Gator Women’s Golf Invitational
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Furman sophomore Stephanie Carlozzi (+13) birdied her final hole to shoot a final-round 75 on Sunday, tying for 32nd place at the 42nd Annual SunTrust Gator Women’s Golf Invitational at the par-70 6,002-yard Mark Bostick Golf Course at the University of Florida.
Carlozzi, who teed off of No. 12 in the day’s shotgun start, recorded birdies on No. 11 and No. 18 to finish the tournament nine strokes behind 75th-ranked Daniela Darquea (+4), who carded a 74-73-67=214 to claim individual medalist honors.
No. 12 Arizona (+26) shot a final-round 285 to win the tournament by one stroke over No. 37 Kent State (+27). No. 30 Ohio State placed third (+35), followed by No. 31 Miami (+44) and No. 32 Texas A&M (+44), who tied for fourth. Furman (+78) finished 13th overall.
Paladin sophomore Valentina Romero (+15) birdied No. 8 and No. 15 to register a final-round 78, tying for 35th place, while freshman Taylor Totland (+24) shot an 81 on Sunday to place 61st. Junior Laura DeMarco (+26) finished 61st after carding a tournament-best 77 in the final round, while senior Aubrie Street (+38) placed in a tie for 79th after shooting an 85 on Sunday.
Furman continues the 2014 season at the M&F Bank Rebel Intercollegiate in Oxford, Miss., April 4-6.
Appalachian State finishes seventh at Pinehurst Challenge
PINEHURST, N.C. – The Appalachian State University women’s golf team’s second-round score of 303 moved it from 10th place to finish in seventh place at the Pinehurst Challenge par-72, 5,949-yard Pinehurst No. 1 golf course.
Tournament play was suspended after 36 holes as rain hampered play in the second round. The tournament featured 14 teams and 78 total golfers. The Mountaineers carded a total team score of 626.
Junior Haley Zagoria carded a second-round score of 74 (+2) to lead the Mountaineers’ scoring five to a top-10 finish. She finished the tournament tied for sixth place, which marks her third top-10 finish of the season. She finished with a total score of 150 (+6), only nine strokes back from the leader.
Creeping behind Zagoria was sophomore Emily Stinson, who teed off second for Appalachian. She finished with a two-round score of 156 (+12), getting better in the second round. She surpassed her first-round score of 79 to post a second-round score of 77.
Two strokes behind her was freshman Hannah Craver. She posted a tournament total of 159 (+15). Sophomore Lily Yatawara posted a tournament total of 161 (+17), and rounding out the Mountaineers’ five was freshman Taylor Shellman, who carded a tournament total of 189.
The Mountaineers will be back in action at the Low Country Intercollegiate hosted by Wofford at Moss Creek Plantation in Hilton Head, S.C., from March 23-24.