Oilers in 5th after Day 1 on Nationals
The University of Findlay women's golf team completed the first day of the 2016 NCAA Division II National Championship on May 18 at the CommonGround Golf Couse in Aurora, Colo. The Oilers ended day one with a score of 299, the second lowest team score in school history, and are in fifth place at the tournament.
The Oilers came out on fire on the front nine as they combined for 11 birdies to enter the turn at 2-under par for the day as a team. They cooled off a bit on the back nine, but still posted 14 birdies on the on Wednesday. Their birdie total was the second-most by a team in the first round.
Senior Kasey Petty paced the squad on the first day of competition and is currently tied for ninth with a 1-over par score of 73. She opened the front nine with a 2-under par score of 34 and was 1-under par heading into the final hole before taking a double bogey to finish with a 73. She was also the best player in the field on par four holes with an average score of 3.88 in the first round.
Freshman Samantha Hatter finished one stroke behind Petty and is tied for 16th with a 74. Hatter completed the front nine 1-under par, but took a double bogey on 11. She then played 1-over par the rest of the way for her score.
Junior Shelby Warner also had a great day for Findlay and is tied for 28th at the tournament with a 3-over par score of 75 while freshman Makenzie Torres is tied for 38th with a 5-over par score of 77. Both players tied for the third at the tournament in the opening round with four birdies apiece. Warner played par five's really well on day one, finishing 2-under par for the day.
Sophomore Kelsey Koesters also competed for Findlay in the event and is in 70th place with an 84.
Nova Southeastern and Rollins are tied for the lead at the tournament with a 2-over par score of 290 while Nova Southeastern's Mailen Domecq Chantry had the best individual round at 69 (-3).
Findlay will hit the course again tomorrow for the second round of the 72-hole tournament.