Statesmen Battle Weather in Opening Round of Nationals
William Penn University Athletics
Pooler, Ga.–The William Penn women’s golf team was knocked around by Mother Nature in a grueling first round at the NAIA National Championships Wednesday.
After 18 holes that took over 28 hours to complete (three weather delays lasting four hours on Tuesday), the Statesmen are tied for 19th out of 27 teams with a score of 330 at the par-72 Savannah Quarters Country Club. Keiser (Fla.) and Cumberlands (Ky.) are tied for first at 306, while Coastal Georgia (308), South Carolina Beaufort (309), and Indiana Tech (309) round out the top five. Nine teams are within six strokes of the leaders in a tight race for the crown.
Elsa Westin of Keiser leads the 143-player individual race with a one-under 71.
Due to the opening round taking two days, the event has been shortened to three rounds (54 holes) and there will no longer be a cut. For the second round on Thursday, WPU will be paired with Rocky Mountain (Mont.) (T-19th, 330) and Corban (Ore.) (21st, 331); the trio will tee off on Hole #1 at 1:20 p.m. (Eastern).
Demi Coertze (Sr., Johannesburg, South Africa, Digital Communication) guided the navy and gold with a 74 (39-35) to tie for eighth place. She was one-under-par on the back nine, recorded three birdies and five pars, and did not suffer anything worse than a bogey.
“Demi was spot on–the best I have ever seen her,” Head Coach Nik Rule said. “She helped us salvage a bad day, turning it into something that keeps us in the mix.”
Elise Warne (Fr., Melbourne, Australia, Exercise Science) was next, tying for 82nd with an 83 (45-38). She recorded one birdie and seven pars.
Courtney Cunningham (Jr., Muskogee, Okla., Computer Science) carded an 85 (41-44) to tie for 102nd. Her round included had one birdie and nine pars.
Natalie Booton (Sr., Mount Pleasant, Elementary Education) is in a tie for 114th at 88 (43-45). The junior produced 12 pars.
Brooke Fletcher (So., Atlantic, Iowa, Business Management) finished off the lineup at 93 (48-45) and is in 136th place; she had eight pars in the first round.
“We certainly did not play our best,” Rule said. “Our relative youth showed, but I am optimistic that we learned what we needed to in order to improve upon our first round score. We are learning and growing up right before our eyes. We will get better.”
