Samford finishes second at Samford Intercollegiate
HOOVER, Ala. – The Samford University women’s golf team turned in its best round of the 2015 Samford Intercollegiate on Tuesday as the Bulldogs carded a day-two total of 301 en route to its second-place finish in the 10-team, 54-hole tournament held at the Hoover Country Club.
Samford, which concluded the competition with a total team score of 915 (305-309-301), finished just eight strokes behind first-place Ole Miss.
On Tuesday, Ole Miss registered the best round of the tournament with a brilliant team mark of 297. The Rebels garnered the event’s championship trophy and ended the two-day competition with a 907 (308-302-297) overall score.
Following Ole Miss and Samford, Louisiana-Monroe (313-308-310=931), Belmont (322-301-309=932) and West Georgia (323-313-315=951) rounded out the top-five teams in the tournament.
The Bulldogs’ second-place finish proved to be Samford’s best of the 2014-15 season and its fourth straight top-five finish of the spring. Since beginning play February, the Bulldogs have compiled consecutive placements of fifth, fifth, fourth and second.
Individually, Ole Miss’ Stani Schiavone blistered the course with a 7-under-par 65 on Tuesday and finished the Samford Intercollegiate with a tournament-best total of 1-under-par 215 (76-74-65). She topped her teammate Alison Hovatter and Evansville’s Kayla Katterhenry by 10 strokes.
Hovatter and Katterhenry both ended the three-round competition tied for second place at 225. Katterhenry made Samford Intercollegiate history Tuesday by knocking home a hole-in-one on the fifth hole.
The Bulldogs’ Emily Stallings carded a team-best 72 in the third round and vaulted into sole possession of seventh place in the individual standings. Stallings, Samford’s senior native of Fayetteville, Georgia, improved in all three rounds and finished the tournament with a 54-hole score of 229 (81-76-72).
The Bulldogs’ Bailey Gray and Sydney Needham also registered top-10 finishes. Gray posted a three-round tally of 230 (74-75-81), while Needham notched a 230 of her own after shooting 74 on Tuesday. Both Gray and Needham finished the tournament tied for eighth place in the individual standings.
All five of Samford’s starters finished among the top 21 in the 65-competitor Samford Intercollegiate.
Following top-10 placements by Stallings, Gray and Needham, the Bulldogs’ Kate Collom ended the tournament tied for 14th place, while Haley Harrington tallied a 21st-place finish. Collom posted a two-day score of 234 (76-82-76), as Harrington followed just behind at 236 (78-79-79=236).
Samford’s Haley Wagner competed as an individual this week and carded her best round of the tournament Tuesday with a 4-over-par 76. She finished tied for 30th place in the competition by posting a 54-hole score of 242 (81-85-76).
The Samford University women’s golf team will next be in action April 3-5, as the Bulldogs travel to Oxford, Mississippi, for the 2015 Rebel Intercollegiate, which will be held at the University Golf Club.
Chattanooga ties for 11th at Briar’s Creek Invitational
JOHNS ISLAND, S.C. – The Chattanooga Mocs put together one of the best team rounds in school history, shooting 2-under-par 286 in the final round of the Briar’s Creek Invitational. Emily McLennan led the way with a 3-under 69 to push the Mocs up to an 11th-place finish at 906, tied with Indiana.
McLennan and Agathe Sauzon (70) combined to shoot 5-under. The duo tallied 11 of the team’s 15 birdies on the day. Megan Woods carded 1 over (73) with Isabella Loza another shot back at 74. Cris Perez turned in 75. Her 75 is the Mocs’ lowest drop score since the 2011 JMU Eagle Landing Invitational.
The Mocs got off to a great start Tuesday morning. Sauzon birdied three of her first five holes, while McLennan was 2-under through her first six. Loza and Woods also recorded early birdies as the squad had more in its first six holes (seven) Tuesday than in the second round total (four), while matching the first 18.
The key hole was the par-5 10th, a closing hole for the team as it started in holes 13-15 in a shotgun start. Chattanooga played it a 2-under to move within a couple of strokes of the top 10. It was pars all around the rest of the way for the tie for 11th finish.
The Mocs were 6-under on the par 3s over the final 18 on the counting cards. The 15 total birdies for the round is UTC’s most since posting 17 in final round of the 2011 JMU event.
Chattanooga returns to the tee in a familiar setting in just under two weeks. The inaugural Chattanooga Classic starts on Monday, April 6, with 36 holes at Council Fire Golf Club. The final 18 is Tuesday. Admission is free for both days.
ETSU finishes 15th at Briar’s Creek Invitational
JOHNS ISLAND, S.C. – Firing a team-best round of 2-under-par 70 in the third and final round of the Briar’s Creek Invitational, junior Vivienne Chin finished tied for 23rd on the individual leaderboard as the ETSU women’s golf team wrapped up play Tuesday at the Golf Club at Briar’s Creek.
As a team, the Buccaneers finished 15th overall after beginning Tuesday’s action with the completion of Monday’s suspended second round, and then following that with the completion of the third and final round.
No. 29 Florida took home the team title with a score of 866, finishing two strokes better than No. 38 Miami. Individually, No. 44-ranked Daniela Darquea of Miami captured the top spot by five strokes over Florida’s Kellly Grassel.
Along with Chin, other ETSU results included a 4-over 76 by freshman Allyson Dunn in the third round, while fellow freshman Dominika Czudkova finished at 5-over 77. On the individual leaderboard, sophomore Rachel Pollock and sophomore Linda Dobele both tied for 65th.
The Bucs will next return to play April 3 in the Rebel Intercollegiate in Oxford, Miss, which will be their final event of the regular season before heading to the Southern Conference Championship.