STOCKBRIDGE, Ga. – Fresh off collecting her first collegiate individual medalist honors last week, Western Carolina freshman Maddi Caldwell matched her career-low round of 1-over par 73 on Sunday to sit in a tie for 10th overall, leading the Catamounts at the John Kirk / Panther Intercollegiate.

Enduring a 75-minute delay for lightning and rain on Sunday, WCU shot an opening-round 303 collectively as a team to sit in a two-way tie for seventh at the par-72, 6,033-yard Eagle’s Landing Country Club.

On the strength of a tournament first-round-best 15 pars, senior Mariah Hopkins sits in a tie for 27th after shooting 4-over-par 76. Senior Kim Mitchell and junior Bethany Galloway are both amidst a tie for 32nd after the first round, shooting 5-over 77, while junior Ashley Thompson is a stroke back at 78, sitting in a tie for 40th.

Playing unattached as an individual, freshman Natalia Villavicencio is off to a solid start after shooting 2-over-par 74 to sit in a tie for 16th overall.

With matching first-round team scores of 5-over 293, Elon and Western Kentucky share the top of the leader board after 18 holes of competition. Eastern Kentucky is two strokes in arrears at 295 in third, followed by Florida Gulf Coast (297) and a two-way tie between Western Michigan and CSU Fullerton tied for fifth at 301.

Elon teammates Emily Brooks and Kelsey Badmaev posted matching rounds of 1-under 71 on Sunday to share the individual lead ahead of a seven-way tie for third at even-par 72.

Paired with golfers from South Alabama and rival Appalachian State, Western Carolina’s scoring five hits the course off the front nine with tee times starting at 8:30 a.m. Villavicencio will tee off on the back nine beginning at 9:06 a.m.