Stockbridge, Ga. – After a disastrous opening round that left the Stetson women's golf team at the back of the field in the John Kirk/Panther Intercollegiate Tournament, the Hatters rallied over the final two day to finish 11th in the 15-team event.
“The golf course for us was different,” Hatters coach Floyd Kerr said. “The girls had not encountered the terrain that we saw there and we didn't adjust to that very well the first day. There was also a frost delay the first day and the cold didn't agree with us either.”
The Hatters opened play with their highest score (323) of the spring, but bounced back with rounds of 305 and 313 on the final two days of play.
Troy won the tournament by posting the lowest round of the tournament (288) in the final round, easily pulling away from Middle Tennessee State, which finished second.
Sophomore Giulia Vandenberg continued her run of solid play this spring, posting a 10-over par score of 226 to tie for 11th place in the tournament. Vandenberg had rounds of 76 in the first and third rounds with a 74 in the middle.
For her efforts in the tournament, Vandenberg was named the Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Week.
Also for Stetson, sophomore Kristine Odaiyar bounced back from an opening round 80 with scores of 75 and 72 in the final two rounds. Her total score of 11-over par 227 was good for a tie for 13th.
“Giulia didn't hit the ball as well in this tournament as she has been, and she three-putted too many times,” Kerr said. “Kristine is making a lot of birdies, and has a lot of birdie opportunities, but she is not getting off to good starts to her rounds.”
Troy's Fatima Fern Cano took medalist honors for the event, winning by seven shots as the only player in the field to finish under par. She closed with a sparkling 67 in the final round to finish with a six-under par score of 210.
Freshman Paige Kemp made improvements in each round, starting with an 80 before posting scores of 79 and 76. She finished tied for 41st with a 19-over par score of 235.
“She had a solid final round, and we need her to play well,” Kerr said. “If we can get her shooting in the mid 70s, that will be good.”
Fellow freshman Eilidh Watson opened with an 87 but improved to 77 in the second round. She closed with an 89 to finish at 37-over par in 76th place. Sophomore Alessandra Kutz finished 81st with a score of 275.
The 11th place finish for the Hatters came on the heels of a ninth place at the MSU Ocala Spring Invitational March 22-24.
Stetson now turns its attention toward the Atlantic Sun Conference Championship Tournament, which opens April 12 at the Reunion Resort in Kissimmee. The Hatters will serve as the host team for that event.
“We are going to take a couple of days off and regroup before getting ready for conference,” Kerr said. “I think the course will just played will help us to get ready for Reunion, especially around the greens. They are similar at Reunion because if you miss a green it is not an easy up and down.”
