Pawley's Island, SC – The Stetson women's golf team went into the first event of the 2016 season with high expectations, but struggled mightily on the first day of play at the Golfweek Program Challenge at the Caledonia Golf and Fish Club.
Stetson opened the tournament with a 38-over par score of 321. The Hatters stand 15th in the 16-team field.
It was the highest score in relation to par in a single round for the Stetson since back-to-back scores of 329 at the LPGA Xavier Invitational in October of 2014. By comparison, the Hatters opened the Golfweek event last year with a seven-over par 291.
The only player for Stetson to make it through the opening round in good shape was junior Carolin Schart, who finished the day with a one-over par 72. She is tied for eighth overall in the tournament.
Schart opened her round with consecutive bogey's on holes 10 and 11, but righted the ship to make the turn at two over par. She posted three birdies and two bogeys on the front nine of the course to finish her round. After a bogey on her 17th hole, she closed her round with a birdie.
Besides Schart, the Hatters did not have another player within 10 shots of par on the opening day of play. Junior Eilidh Watson opened with an 81 while freshman Erikah Neger and junior Paige Kemp posted 84s. Senior Giulia Vandenberg, who opened the same even last year with a school-record tying 66, struggled throughout her opening round and finished with an 86.
It was not defending champion Campbell that set the pace on the first day of play. The Camels posted a 290 are are tied for second with Jacksonville State, seven shots behind Boston College. The Eagles were led by Ailin Li, whose 68 has her alone in first place.
The Hatters will open play in the second round on Monday on the back nine with tee times starting at 9 a.m. Stetson's players will be paired with players from Valparaiso and Radford on the second day of play.
Live scoring is available throughout the event at GolfStat.com.
About Stetson University Athletics: Stetson University's Athletics Program has a vision of developing a culture of champions athletically, academically and within the community. This vision is accomplished through a mission of recruiting and developing student-athletes, coaches and staff, creating a culture of champions, within and outside of competition. The department operates with five core values: Championship Culture, Integrity, Excellence, Pride/Tradition and Leadership. To learn more about the Vision, Mission and Core Values for Stetson Athletics, visit GoHatters.com and click on Mission Statement under the Inside Athletics tab.
