JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn – Coming off a 2015-16 season that saw them finish second in the South Atlantic Conference, the Carson-Newman women's golf team is prepared to begin the 2016 fall season at the Ross Rollins Invitational in Pinehurst, S.C on Monday.
The Eagles did graduate three players after last season and enter this year's schedule with a young roster that includes just one senior and one junior. Coach Suzanne Strudwick has assembled a group that includes five freshman, but she still expects her squad to be able to compete in this tournament, as well as moving forward.
"I'm really excited about our young players," Strudwick said. "Allie [Fletcher] and Reagan [Kinnie] played outstanding in qualifying. I was hoping I'd recruited players who could make a difference and right out the starting gate, they made a statement."
Freshman Allie Fletcher (Cumming, Ga.) enters the tournament as the low qualifier for Carson-Newman after shooting a 76, 36 during the qualifying round. Fletcher joined Eagles after a high school career in which she was a two-time All-Region selection at West Forsyth High School.
Junior Elizabeth England (Oakland, Tenn.) is also on her coach's roster for the tournament following a sophomore year in which she was a first-team All-SAC selection and a member of the All-SAC Women's Golf Championship second-team. England finished in the top 10 in half of the 10 tournaments she competed in and she won the Agnes McAmis Memorial tournament in April. In last year's Rollins Ross Invitational, England shot a 234 to place 11th.
Freshman Reagan Kinnie (Murfreesboro, Tenn.), sophomore Taylor Hayes (Lake Ozark, Mo) and senior Jessica Hart (Roanoke, Va.) round out the group that coach Strudwick has selected to play in Pinehurst. Hayes debut season saw her finish in the top 10 in five of the year's 10 tournaments. She was selected to the All-SAC second team and also earned a spot on the SAC Women's Golf Championship All-Tournament team after finishing fourth.
This is the third straight season in which the Eagles have played in the Rollins Ross Invitational and they have produced strong showings in each of their previous trips. In 2014, they put together a sixth place finish and in 2015, C-N finished 11th and were tied for the lead after the first two rounds.
The tournament is scheduled to begin on Monday with 36 holes of golf followed by 18 more on Tuesday. There will be recaps for both days of the event on cneagles.com.
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