SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. – Guided by senior Danielle Baiunco's (Melbourne, Fla.) boring round of golf, the Carson-Newman women's golf team is in third-place after the first round of the South Atlantic Conference Championships at Sevierville Golf Club's River Course in Sevierville, Tenn.
Baiunco called her first round of the three round tournament "boring golf" and that included the best scoring amongst players on par fours and the third best scoring on par fives.
Her definition also included a first round score of 76 and a tie for fourth-place on the leaderboard.
"It's awesome. It was a dream come true today to just come out and play good. I'm said it's over, but I'm excited I got to play good and hopefully, the next two days are the same thing," Baiunco said.
Baiunco also shot her lowest score in seven rounds at the South Atlantic Conference Championships. Her previous best a 79 during the second and third rounds of the 2013 Championships.
"Really, just organized golf, smart golf. I hit my fairways, hit my greens and two-putted. Nothing extravagant today. Nothing really terrible. It was very boring golf today but it's fine," said Baiunco.
Freshman Elizabeth England (Oakland, Tenn.) is tied for seventh after the first 18 holes with a six-over 78. She led the tournament in scoring on par threes with the only below-par average of 2.75 strokes. She also leads the tournament with four birdies.
Junior Meridith Hawkins (Powell, Tenn.) shot a nine-over 81 and she is tied for 13th. Hawkins's 81 is her lowest round in the tournament since the 2013 edition of the tournament that was played on the Highlands Course at Sevierville Golf Club. The junior had one of the best scores on par threes as she shot a one-over and averaged 3.25 strokes. She also carded 10 pars.
Junior Kelli Pemberton (Knoxville, Tenn.) shot a score of 10-over 82 for a tie for 17th after the first round. She shot even par on par fives. Her score is her lowest score in a SAC Championship.
Sophomore Jessica Hart (Roanoke, Va.) opened the tournament with the first shot early Sunday morning and finished in the early afternoon with a score of 86. The sophomore is competing as an individual. She made two birdies over the course of 18 holes.
Junior Rebekah Pruett (Niceville, Fla.) is tied for 46th after shooting an 18-over 90. The junior is making her SAC Championships debut and had one of the lower average scores on par threes as she averaged 3.50 strokes and finished two-over par.
"We can even do better than that," coach Suzanne Strudwick said of her team's play. "We saw some things out there. I know Meridith is not happy with her 81 and I know she has the potential to shoot 75 to 78 around here, no problem at all. It's a great foundation. I just think it's a great place to start on our home turf."
Newberry leads the team competition by seven strokes over Wingate and nine strokes over C-N. In individual play, Newberry's Karly Mims and Grace Glaze of Queens are tied for the individual lead after the duo shot a first round score of two-over 74.
The second round of the SAC Championships commences at 8:30 a.m. Monday morning from the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains.
T4 Danielle Baiunco 76 +4
T7 Elizabeth England 78 +6
T13 Meridith Hawkins 81 +9
T17 Kelli Pemberton 82 +10
T37 Jessica Hart 88 +16
T46 Rebekah Pruett 90 +18
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