SANDESTIN, Fla. – The University of South Alabama women's golf team played its best round of the tournament today, a seven-over-par 291, and tied for fifth overall in the Sun Belt Conference Championships at the Raven Golf Club.
Caroline Berge carded three birdies and played an even-par 71 in the final round to tie for 10th individually. The team's 291 score was the second-best round of the day; the Jaguars trailed Coastal Carolina by only two strokes.
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)
Results
TEAM SCORES
1) Coastal Carolina 297-286-289 – 872 (+20); 2) Troy 300-306-300 – 906 (+54); 3) Georgia Southern 299-318-297 – 914 (+62); 4) Texas State 310-312-293 – 915 (+63); T5) South Alabama 323-307-291 – 921 (+69); T5) Arkansas State 311-313-297 – 921 (+69); T5) Georgia State 315-309-297 – 921 (+69); 8) UT Arlington 307-306-312 – 925 (+73); 9) Appalachian State 307-323-300 – 930 (+78); 10) Little Rock 327-319-315 – 961 (+109); 11) ULM 321-335-311 – 967 (+115)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
1) Malene Krolboll Hansen, Coastal Carolina, 73-69-69 – 211 (-2); 2) Sena Ersoy, Coastal Carolina, 77-70-69 – 216 (+3); 3) Ansley Bowman, Georgia Southern, 75-78-69 – 222 (+9); 4) Paula Zabarte, Georgia State, 73-77-73 – 223 (+10); T5) Marie Lunackova, Coastal Carolina, 74-77-73 – 224 (+11); T5) Chloe Howard, Georgia State, 76-76-72 – 224 (+11); T5) Joliana Elias, Appalachian State, 72-79-73 – 224 (+11); T8) Frantiska Lunackova, Coastal Carolina, 77-70-78 – 225 (+12); T8) Ava Schwienteck, UT Arlington, 74-75-76 – 225 (+12); T10) Sasikarn Soomboonsup, Texas State, 72-84-70 – 226 (+13); T10) Aracelly Jimenez Rios, Arkansas State, 77-77-72 – 226 (+13); T10) Melany Chong, Appalachian State, 76-79-71 – 226 (+13); T10) Caroline Berge, South Alabama, 78-77-71 – 226 (+13); T10) Lindsey Harrison, Troy, 71-75-80 – 226 (+13)
SOUTH ALABAMA SCORES
T10) Caroline Berge, 78-77-71 – 226 (+13); T18) Siti Shaari, 81-74-74 – 229 (+116); T26) Julie Hovland, 80-80-72 – 232 (+19); T35) MacKenzie Peyton, 84-77-75 – 236 (+23); T37) Madison Connell, 84-79-74 – 237 (+24)
TEE SHOTS
-The Jaguars finished third in par-3 scoring with a 3.16 average (+12). The team also had the third-highest number of pars (153) and carded 27 birdies in the event.
-Berge's 226 (+13) total was the first top-10 three-round tournament finish and the third-lowest total of her career. Her two previous low tournament scores were at the USA Intercollegiate (220, +4) and the Pirate Collegiate Classic (224, +8) in September. The freshman tied for third overall in par-3 scoring (2.87 average, -2) and played 42 holes at par or better over three days of competition. She held a 4.41 average (+11) in par-4 scoring and a 5.33 average (+4) on par-5s.
-Siti Shaari shot a 74 (+3) for the second consecutive day and carded a team-high six birdies in the final round. She played 29 holes at par and tied for first in number of birdies (10). The freshman led the Jaguars in par-4 scoring and tied for fifth overall in the category with a 4.22 average (+6).
-Julie Hovland had her best round of the tournament today with a one-over-par 72. She played 14 holes at par or better in round three, including four birdies. The newcomer finished tied for 26th overall. She tied for the best Jaguar average in par-5 scoring (5.25, +3) and was second on the team on par-4s with a 4.37 average (+10).
-MacKenzie Peyton carded four birdies and scored a four-over-par 75 in the final round. She averaged 3.13 (+2) and tied for 13th overall on par-3s. The junior tied for 35th in the individual standings.
-Madison Connell moved up five spots to finish tied for 37th after shooting a three-over-par 74 in the final round of her collegiate career. The senior played 16 holes at par in round three and 36 at par or better in the tournament. She averaged 3.30 (+3) on par-3s and 5.25 (+3) on par-5s. During her time as a Jaguar, Connell improved from an 80.39 average to a 75.38 average.
THEY SAID IT
Head Coach Matt Luther
On the improvements in round three… "We played a ton better and did the same stuff we've been talking about for the last two days. We had better weather and a much more scorable golf course, so we took advantage of it. We had it going early, finished on some tough holes and kind of let a really special round get away. Overall, we played fantastic today and showed where we really stand in the Sun Belt Conference, which is closer to the top than the bottom."
On Berge's first top-10… "She has started to turn a corner of late and is getting some swing stuff in order. She hit it a lot better this week than she has all year and is slowly grasping onto some concepts we've been talking about all year. She definitely has a ton of upside, as do the rest of the freshmen who were in the lineup this week."
On having multiple student-athletes return for the 2018-19 year… "The future is very bright for us. It's huge. We showed the last two days that we can play with and beat everybody in the Sun Belt Conference. We did it with three freshmen and a junior in the lineup, with another freshman at home. I like where we're at going forward. We got a lot of good experience for those players this week. I think we're going to be back with a special couple of years in front of us."
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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