Results

JONESBORO, Ark. – The University of South Alabama women's golf team won the Lady Red Wolves Classic, held Oct. 12-13, at Sage Meadows Golf Club, and junior Julie Hovland earned individual medalist honors.

USA (287-289-290—866) finished with a three-round team total of 2-over par 866, which included a 1-under par 287 in the opening round of the tournament. Hovland (69-68-71—208) posted a three-round, 8-under par total of 208.

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Event (Host):  Lady Red Wolves Classic (Arkansas State)
Dates:  Oct. 12-13 (Monday - Tuesday)
Format:  54 holes (36/18)  
Course:  Sage Meadows Golf Club 
 
TEAM SCORES
1) South Alabama, 287-289-290—866 (+2);  2) Arkansas State, 288-300-292—880 (+16);  3) Troy, 288-299-294—881 (+17);  4) Central Arkansas, 288-300-296—884 (+20);  5) Western Kentucky, 300-295-291—886 (+22)  T6) Chattanooga, 301-294-292—887 (+23);  T6) Middle Tennessee, 299-300-288—887 (+23);  8) Southern Illinois, 293-306-296—895 (+31);  9) Houston Baptist, 307-297-297—901 (+37);  10) Missouri State, 298-305-301—904 (+40);  11) BYU, 298-310-298—906 (+42);  12) Southern Miss, 306-309-298—913 (+49);  13) UAB, 297-308-310—915 (+51);  14) Little Rock, 310-312-311—933 (+69);  15) Stephen F. Austin, 314-316-313—943 (+25)  

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS
1) Julie Hovland, South Alabama, 69-68-71—208 (-8);  2) Allysha Mae Mateo, BYU, 68-73-70—211 (-5);  T3) Belinda May, South Alabama, 70-72-73—215 (-1);  T3) Olivia Schmidt, ASU, 72-70-73—215 (-1);  T3) Abby Cavaiani, Missouri State, 71-69-75—215 (-1);  T6) Grayson Gladden, ASU, 71-77-68—216 (E);  T6) Esme Hamilton, Chattanooga, 72-74-70—216 (E);  T6) Tania Nunez, UCA, 69-75-72—216 (E);  T9) Sophie Burks, Middle Tennessee, 77-69-71—217 (+1);  T9) Mary Joiner, WKU, 75-70-72—217 (+1)

SOUTH ALABAMA SCORES
1) Julie Hovland, 69-68-71—208 (-8);  T3) Belinda May, 70-72-73—215 (-1);  T11) Siti Shaari, 73-74-71—218 (+2);  T45) Caroline Berge, 79-75-75—229 (+13);  T52) Carlota Garcia, 75-76-80—231 (+15);  T65) Nele Mattner*, 79-79-77—235 (+19)
* - Denotes competed as individual

TEE SHOTS
- Hovland's win marked her second individual victory this season after she won medalist honors at the USA Intercollegiate with a three-round, 12-under par total of 204.
- May earned her best career finish (T-3rd), and recorded a career-low 2-under par 70 in the opening round of the tournament. Her three-round, 1-under par total of 215 also marked a career low.
- Shaari finished tied for 11th, marking the ninth out of the last 10 tournaments dating back to last year's season opener at the USA Intercollegiate, that she has finished in the top 15.
- Berge tied her season-low round with a 3-over par 75 in both the second and third rounds.
- The win marked the Jaguars first tournament victory since they won the 2019 Sun Belt Conference Championship in Daytona Beach, Florida.
- USA won the tournament by 14 strokes over Arkansas State, who finished second with a three-round 16-over par total of 880. The Jags shot 1-under par 287 in the opening round, which marked their first under-par team round this season. 
- The Jags led the tournament in par-three scoring with a 5-over par team average of 3.08 during the event. USA also led in birdies with 53.
- Hovland led the field and set a new program record for birdies in a tournament with 19. She played par-five holes at 5-under par at an average of 4.58, and led the field in par-three scoring at 3-under par at an average of 2.75 strokes.

QUOTES
Head Coach Matt Luther 
- On the tournament:
"We played in and got beat up by the wind in our last tournament at Hoover (Alabama), and we came back home and put a plan together for what we're going to do the next time we play in the wind. We played in some nasty Arkansas wind yesterday and managed it really well. Hat's off to our kids for being adaptable, and willing to grow, learn and understand where they need to get better and go out and do it."

- On improvements made from UAB to Arkansas State tournament:
"We saw what our bad looks like (at UAB), and this week we saw what our good looks like. There's a lot in the middle that is still possible for us, and we need to keep doing what we're doing to keep moving toward the good for us."

- On Julie Hovland:
"It was just boring golf, and she just puts herself in position for 54 holes. When you do that, you're going to win. That is what we preach here – just keep the ball in a good spot and make good decisions. She drove it great this week and putted pretty good; when she does that she is going to win by a bunch, and when she doesn't she is still going to be in the top 10."

- On Belinda May:
"This is just the player that Belinda can be. She's just starting to realize how good she is. I probably walked 25 holes with her yesterday. She is learning how to make good decisions. We have done a lot of work with her putting on some basic speed-control stuff. We're just scratching the surface of where we're going to go with Belinda. It's awesome to see her be willing to grow up – it's great when you take a big step forward like this. It helps the development process."

- On upcoming final fall tournament:
"It's a tournament we pulled together at the last minute. There are some good teams in it. We are hosting on the road, which is weird, but it's been a weird year. At this point, I'm excited we're going to get to play all four (fall tournaments) – it looks like we are. Things are going good, and we're just going to keep rolling."

UP NEXT
The Jaguars return to action Oct. 19 when they open play at the Callaway Gardens Invite in Pine Mountain, Ga.

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.