Statesmen Capture Third Place at Northwest Iowa Event
Le Mars–The William Penn women’s golf team took down a school record as it battled at the Northwest Iowa National Invitational Monday and Tuesday. The team played at Willow Creek Golf Club, a course that was playing just under 6,000 yards.
The Statesmen fired a three-round total of 908 (303-302-303) to finish in a tie for third place with the Mustangs of Morningside; WPU won the scorecard playoff to claim the bronze outright. Texas Wesleyan took the team title with a three-round total of 855, headlined by the individual title with Malisone Chanthapanya with a total score of 205 (11 under par).
Sam Maceli (Fr., Pittsburg, Kan., Exercise Science) recorded another top-10 finish with a tie for ninth place after shooting a three-round total of 224 (72-76-76), four strokes off the school 54-hole record. Maceli also led the Statesmen in par-four scoring (4.20), par-five scoring (4.58), eagles (1), and pars (35). Trailing just behind Maceli was Madi Schlaepfer (Fr., Gering, Neb., Education) who posted a three-round total of 226 (74-75-77) and collected a 12th-place finish. Schlaepfer matched Maceli in par-five scoring (4.58), had one eagle, and led the team individually with eight birdies.
After a tough first round, Courtney Jackson (Jr., Liberty Lake, Wash., Digital Communication) turned it around for the second and third rounds to finish with a total of 228 (80-73-75). Jackson shared the lead of par-three scoring with an average of 3.25 strokes and collected 35 pars. Olivia Lange (Fr., Porta Westfalica, Germany, Business Management) tallied a three-round total of 232 (79-78-75) to finish in 19th place. Bailee Frayne (Sr., Garner, Iowa, Elementary Education) also completed her tournament with a three-round total of 238 (78-80-80) for a tie for 23rd place.
“This is a tournament we look forward to attending every year,” said head coach Bailey Rimes. “It gives us the opportunity to compete with some of the best teams in the country who we usually don’t see until the spring. It’s exciting to be in that environment and our girls ate it up! This team is hungry. What we showed this week wasn’t our best, we left a lot of strokes on the course these past two days. Our mission is to continue to enhance and get better in every tournament. We can’t wait for the next one.”
Next up: The Statesmen are slated to compete in the Heart of America Athletic Conference Preview on October 4-5 at The Golf Club at Creekmoor in Raymore, Mo..
