SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman women's golf team is tied for ninth after the first round of the Bobby Nichols Intercollegiate hosted by Tennessee Tech at the Sevierville Golf Club's Highlands Course after cold weather affected the greens and play, while rain hit the Smoky Mountains moments after the first round came to a conclusion.
C-N is tied with Evansville for ninth after shooting a 49-over 333 during the first day of competition in Sevierville. Sophomore Elizabeth England (Oakland, Tenn.) led the Eagles with a score of seven-over 79 and is tied for 14th.
"Today was a tough day with tough conditions," coach Suzanne Strudwick said. "Even though this is our home course, the course played to tournament conditions with fast, hard greens. I'm very pleased with Elizabeth's (England) 79, Taylor's (Hayes) 81 and Jessie's (Hart) 84. They showed our two seniors how to fight for a score and not be afraid.
"I would love to see everyone show Eagle Pride the next two days and dig deep for every shot. Conditions are not going to get any easier, which we should expect since we have played here every year with tournament-tough greens."
England led the team with nine pars on the day and averaged 3.33 strokes on par-threes, which tied for eighth in the field; the sophomore also averaged 5.20 strokes and finished one-over on par-fives. England's 79 tied for her second-lowest score of the spring season.
Freshman Taylor Hayes (Lake Ozark, Mo.) is tied for 21st after a nine-over 81 during her first 18 holes of the tournament. The freshman led the team in par-four scoring with a score of four-over and an average of 4.57 strokes. The Missourian's 79 is her third-straight score in the 70s on the Highlands Course.
Junior Jessica Hart (Roanoke, Va.) fired a 12-over 84 and is tied for 41st after the first day. Hart's score is the fourth-lowest tally the junior has recorded during the 2015-16 season.
Senior Meridith Hawkins (Powell, Tenn.) and sophomore Mikaela Thibodeau (Davie, Fla.) each carded scores of 17-over 89 and are tied for 64th. Competing as an individual, Thibodeau's 89 is her fourth-lowest round of the year, while Hawkins's shot her first score in the 80s in four rounds of play, dating back to the Kiawah Island Intercollegiate hosted by Tusculum that opened the spring season. Senior Kelli Pemberton (Knoxville, Tenn.) is in 68th after an 18-over 90 to open the tournament.
Southern Mississippi's Devon Spriddle leads the individual competition with the lone even-par round of the day with a 72; she leads Youngstown State's Emily Dixon by two strokes, while Valentina Haupt from Southern Miss and Austin Peay's Jessica Cathey are tied for third. Southern Miss leads the team competition by 10 strokes over the Penguins of Youngstown State. North Carolina – Greensboro and host Tennessee Tech are tied for third.
The second round of the Bobby Nichols Intercollegiate is scheduled to start at noon due to expected frost at the Sevierville Golf Club's Highlands Course with a shotgun start.
T9 Carson-Newman 333 (+49)
T14 Elizabeth England 79 (+7)
T21 Taylor Hayes 81 (+9)
T41 Jessica Hart 84 (+12)
T64 Meridith Hawkins 89 (+17)
T64 Mikaela Thibadeau 89 (+17)
68 Kelli Pemberton 90 (+18)
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