SANDESTIN, Fla. – The University of South Alabama women's golf team ranks 10th after shooting a combined 323 during the opening round of the Sun Belt Conference Championships at the Raven Golf Club.
Freshman Caroline Berge played 12 holes at par and led the Jaguars with a team-low 78 (+7) on day one of the tournament.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Event (Host): 2018 Sun Belt Conference Championships (Sun Belt)
Dates: April 15-17 (Sunday-Tuesday)
Format: 54 holes (18/18/18)
Start Time: 7:30 a.m.
Course: The Raven Golf Club (par 71, 6,171 yds)
Live Results
TEAM SCORES
1) Coastal Carolina 297 (+13); 2) Georgia Southern 299 (+15); 3) Troy 300 (+16); T4) Appalachian State 307 (+23); T4) UT Arlington 307 (+23); 6) Texas State 310 (+26); 7) Arkansas State 311 (+27); 8) Georgia State 315 (+31); 9) ULM 321 (+37); 10) South Alabama 323 (+39); 11) Little Rock 327 (+43)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
T1) Julianna Collett, Georgia Southern, 71 (E); T1) Lindsey Harrison, Troy, 71 (E); T3) Joliana Elias, Appalachian State, 72 (+1); T3) Sasikarn Somboonsup, Texas State, 72 (+1); T5) Malene Krolboll Hansen, Coastal Carolina, 73 (+2); T5) Paula Zabarte, Georgia State, 73 (+2); T5) Stephanie Henning, Coastal Carolina, 73 (+2); T8) Ava Schwienteck, UT Arlington, 74 (+3); T8) Natalie Petersen, Georgia Southern, 74 (+3); T8) Sydney Garber, UT Arlington, 74 (+3); T8) Marie Lunackova, Coastal Carolina, 74 (+3)
SOUTH ALABAMA SCORES
26) Caroline Berge, 78 (+7); T30) Julie Hovland, 80 (+9); T35) Siti Shaari, 81 (+10); T43) Madison Connell, 84 (+13); T43) MacKenzie Peyton, 84 (+13)
TEE SHOTS
-The Jaguars played 47 holes at par and averaged 3.28 (+7) on par-3 scoring.
-Berge tied for fourth overall on par-3 holes, averaging 2.80 (-1). She carded two birdies and holds a 5.25 (+1) average on par-5s after round one.
-Julie Hovland averaged 4.22 (+2) on par-4s, tying for ninth overall. She played seven holes at par and carded one birdie in the round.
-Siti Shaari played 14 holes at par – tying for second overall— and tied for fourth overall in par-4 scoring with a 4.11 average (+1). The freshman averaged 3.40 (+2) on par-3 scoring.
-Madison Connell's 3.20 average (+1) on par-3 holes tied her for 22nd individually. She played nine holes at par and averaged 6.00 (+4) on par-5s.
-MacKenzie Peyton carded one birdie and played five holes at par. She averaged 3.40 (+2) on par-3s.
THEY SAID IT
Head Coach Matt Luther
On course conditions and weather… "The weather was tough, but it was tough for everybody. I think we came in a little over-excited and tried to win off the first tee, and you can't do that in a golf tournament."
On the team's resiliency and ability to refocus for the remainder of the tournament… "We're going to find out a lot tomorrow. The tournament is certainly not over. We talked afterwards about staying present, playing one shot at a time and not trying to dig yourself out of a hole in one shot. We talked about plugging, grinding and keeping a positive attitude to fight your way back in."
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com, and follow the Jaguars at www.twitter.com/WeAreSouth_JAGS. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
Join the Chip In Club, the women's golf specific support club of the Jaguar Athletic Fund. All donations to the Chip In Club go directly to support the South Alabama women's golf program. For more information on how you can join visit: jaguarathleticfund.com/chipinclub.
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