Samford finish fourth at UNF Collegiate
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Samford University women’s golf team continued to make its claim as one of the hottest squads in the Southeast Region on Tuesday, as the Bulldogs notched their third consecutive top-five finish, at the 2015 North Florida Intercollegiate held at the Jacksonville Golf and Country Club.
Amidst the most challenging weather conditions of the week Tuesday, Samford carded a final-round score of 312 and finished the two-day, 54-hole competition with a total team tally of 916 (304-300-312).
The Bulldogs concluded the 18-team tournament in sole possession of fourth place and just nine strokes behind third-place Delaware (306-299-302=907). Houston earned the championship title of the event with a 15-stroke cushion over second-place and No. 50-ranked Texas (300-300-300=900).
So far this spring, the Bulldogs have compiled a 55-11 head-to-head record.
Individually, Samford’s Sydney Needham placed fifth out of 105 competitors Tuesday and garnered her fourth top-10 finish of the 2014-15 season. The Bulldogs’ sophomore native of Carrollton, Georgia, carded a 2-under-par 70 in the final round of competition to post a 54-hole mark of 221 (76-75-70).
Needham finished the 2015 UNF Intercollegiate just four strokes behind individual medalist Megan Thothong (75-74-68=217) of Houston.
Samford senior Bailey Gray registered a top-15 finish Tuesday by posting a three-round score of 227 (75-74-78). Gray has accumulated six consecutive top-20 finishes this season, with each of the last four being top-15 placements.
Rounding out Samford’s scores Tuesday were sophomore Haley Harrington (81-75-78=234), senior Emily Stallings (72-76-88=236) and true freshman Kate Collom (82-79-86 (247).
The Samford University women’s golf team will next be in action March 23-24, as the Bulldogs return home to Birmingham, Alabama, for the 2015 Samford Intercollegiate to be held at the Hoover Country Club.
Western Carolina finishes seventh at UNF Collegiate
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Western Carolina women's golf rallied three spots in the final team standings on Tuesday, carding a final-round score of 306 to finish seventh overall at the UNF Collegiate. Junior Kim Mitchell and sophomore Olivia Landino finished tied for 20th individually to lead the Catamounts, who finished with a three-round score of 929.
After carding consecutive rounds of 5-over-par 77 on Monday, Mitchell closed her tournament with a 3-over-par round of 75 to advance six positions in the final standings. The Woodbridge, Va., native countered four bogeys and one double-bogey with three birdies in the final round. She stood 3-over-par through 12 holes played before recording back-to-back birdies on the third and fourth holes to move back to 1-over par. She came home with a pair of bogeys on holes No. 7 and 8 to shoot 3-over 75.
Landino, who led the Catamounts after 36 holes, shot 5-over 77 in the final round to finish tied with Mitchell for 20th.
WCU junior Mariah Hopkins turned in the best final round score for the Catamounts, posting a 2-over round of 74, finishing tied for 52nd overall with a two-day score of 238.
Rounding out WCU's scoring five were sophomores Bethany Galloway (78-78-86=242) in a tie for 66th and Ashley Thompson in a tie for 70th (82-82-80=244). Thompson shot 80 on Tuesday with 10 pars and eight bogeys, while Galloway had 10 bogeys and a pair of double-bogeys with six pars.
Western Carolina returns to action March 29-31 at the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate, hosted by Georgia State at the Eagle's Landing Country Club in Stockbridge, Ga.