Statesmen Take First at Baker Match Play
Olathe, Kan.–It was a change of pace for the women’s golf team of William Penn University on Monday and Tuesday as the squad traveled south for the Baker Match Play. The two-day tournament saw the Statesmen defeat Hastings and Baker en route to a first-place finish in their final match of the fall.
The match play format pairs a golfer from one team in a head-to-head battle against a golfer from another team. The player with the lowest score wins the hole and the player who has claimed the most holes at the end of the match is the winner. This is then carried over into the team score to see who advances.
Prairie Highlands Golf Club is a par 72 course that has a maximum distance of 7,100 yards and is billed as the place where “Scotland and Kansas collide”. It features 60 bunkers over the 18 holes, while a couple of water features come into play around holes seven, 9, 14, 15, and 16.
WPU earned a bye for Monday morning’s first round. When the final results came in, the navy and gold were slotted againt the Broncos of Hastings College in Tuesday’s semifinals.
WPU 4.5, Hastings 0.5
Alexis Guimaraes (Sr., San Ramon, Calif., Psychology) led off for the Statesmen. She was up against Mackenzie Loseke, who ended up taking a three-hole lead in the early stages. Not going away that easily, the senior won six of her last eight holes to win 3&2, meaning she was up three holes with two to play, in a strong comeback.
Bailee Frayne (Jr., Garner, Iowa, Elementary Education) had a good day as she took the match against Anna Cafferty 6&5. Julia Hippely (Jr., Huron, Ohio General Accounting) defeated Shelby Schroeder with a 9&8 advantage as well.
Jaclyn Wojchiechowski (So., Graytown, Ohio, Business Management) went the distance against Emma Severson, but nothing separated them at the end of 18 holes as the match was halved. Carlee Frayne (Fr., Garner, Iowa, Sports Management) had to battle against Sydney Holmes, but pulled away on the back nine to win at 2&1.
By dispatching the Broncos, the Statesmen headed into day two with the Wildcats as their opponents for the championship.
WPU 5, Baker 0
The navy and gold did not trail on Tuesday as they cruised around the course. Putting plenty of wins on the board early, WPU had everyone finish with a win well before the 18th green.
Guimaraes defeated Jacy Anderson 4&3, while Bailee Frayne won her match against Brooklynn Lamberd 5&4. Hippely defeated Kyra Larson by that same 5&4 score, while Wojchiechowski won 5&3. Carlee Frayne brought home another 5&4 victory for the navy and gold as they swept Baker.
“I am very proud of how the girls played this week,” said Head Coach Bailey Rimes. “Match play is a unique and fun style of golf where it can be potentially anyone’s game. They played some fantastic golf and finished out the fall season strong, with a BIG win!”
Next Event: The team will head into the winter break and await the warmth of the spring season.
