JEFFERSON CITY, Tenn. – The Carson-Newman women's golf team returns back to East Tennessee as the Eagles host the fifth-annual Smokey Mountain Intercollegiate at Sevierville Golf Club's Highland Course.
C-N is starting its second tournament in the last six days after finishing in a tie for 11th at the Ross Resorts Invitational that was played at Mid Pines Country Club in North Carolina.
"We've worked hard. I believe we are prepared well. The girls have had enough time to play the Highlands and get ready for it," coach Suzanne Strudwick said.
All nine players listed on the Carson-Newman roster will be playing in this week's SMI and the Eagles will be split into two teams. The Carson-Newman A-team will consist of freshman Taylor Hayes (Lake Ozark, Mo.), sophomore Elizabeth England (Oakland, Tenn.) and seniors Meridith Hawkins (Powell, Tenn.), Kelli Pemberton (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Rebekah Pruett (Niceville, Fla.). Hayes, England and Hawkins all played at last week's event hosted by Rollins. The B-team will be comprised of freshman Summer Smith (Knoxville, Tenn.), sophomores Ashley Kay (Palos Heights, Ill.) and Miakela Thibodeau (Davie, Fla.) and junior Jessica Hart (Roanoke, Va.) Thibodeau and Kay were the two other members of the Ross Resorts side.
Smith will be making her debut in the Blue and Orange after a successful high school career at Halls High School in nearby Halls, Tenn. Hart, Pemberton and Pruett are all making their debuts in 20145; each of the those three last competed at the 2015 South Atlantic Conference Championships, which was also played at the River Course.
"It's always prudent to have some seniors with a little bit more playing experience time on your team. We took two sophomores last week and they struggled with just coming off the summer and playing their first event. They were a little overwhelmed. They qualified well for the event, but there is a big difference from playing qualifying to get into the event and then actually being there and they showed they need a little more playing time and competition to help prepare themselves for that," Strudwick said.
Joining the Eagles on the links in the tournament will be fellow SAC teams Wingate and Newberry as well Belmont Abbey, King (Tenn.), Limestone and University of Virginia – Wise. Lee is the reigning Smokey Mountain Intercollegiate, but the Flames are not participating in the 2015 edition of the tournament. Last season's SMI was played at the River Course.
The Highlands Course stretches 5,458 yards and plays as a par-70; the course winds through the back hills of Sevier County. The Highlands course is shorter and narrower than the River Course; the course is a championship-caliber layout as it played as the host of the 2013 SAC Championships.
"The Highlands course has six par-threes, two on the front and four on the back. The key to that course is playing the par-threes well and par-fives," Strudwick said.
The Smokey Mountain Intercollegiate tees off on Sunday morning at the River Course at Sevierville Golf Club, which is nestled in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. Results and a recap will follow the conclusion of each round of play.
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