March 4, 2018
Rucker Intercollegiate Final Results
HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. – The Vanderbilt women’s golf team struggled to make birdies Sunday, and finished 11th in the final team standings of the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate.
After recording 22 birdies over the first 36 holes Friday and Saturday at the Long Cove Club on Hilton Head, the Commodores managed just a single birdie Sunday in windy conditions on the tough Pete Dye Course. Without the benefit of sub-par scores, the Commodores concluded the day with a 22-over total of 306.
Vanderbilt’s three-day total of 901 resulted in an 11th place tie with Georgia. The Commodores and Bulldogs were just four strokes out of seventh place in the team standings.
Head coach Greg Allen was disappointed for his young squad that entered the final round hoping to move up from an eighth-place position.
“This was just a frustrating day on so many levels,” Allen said. “A couple of our girls had a tough day with their ball striking and those that hit it okay struggled to make putts.
“This course played difficult, but the bottom line is when we only make one birdie and don’t have very many good birdie opportunities, we’re simply not going to beat many teams,” Allen added.
The Commodores were paced by freshman Louise Yu, who notched a four-over par 75. Sophomore Abbey Carlson, junior Courtney Zeng and freshman Morgan Baxendale posted rounds of six-over par 77. A third freshman, Virginia Green, struggled to an 82.
Despite the poor third-round scoring, the Commodores defeated Arizona State, Oklahoma State and Virginia, who all rank in the top 20 nationally.
Allen said he would take more positives than negatives from the prestigious three-day tournament.
“We’re disappointed about today’s performance but not discouraged,” Allen said. “We have to learn how to minimize the damage when we make mistakes, but I also thought we did a lot of good things this week. We’ll work to correct the mistakes, work to get better and be ready to play well for our next tournament.”
The Commodores will be back in action at the Clemson Invitational. The event is scheduled March 23-25 at The Reserve at Lake Keowee near the University of Clemson campus.
Darius Rucker Intercollegiate Final Team Scores
1. Alabama (+14) 286-291-289=866
2. Arkansas (+22) 290-296-288=874
3. Wake Forest (+26) 296-294-288=878
4. Duke (+27) 295-296-288=879
5. Northwestern (+34) 287-296-303=886
6. Furman (+39) 292-298-302=891
T-7. Auburn (+46) 304-303-291=898
T-7. No. Carolina (+46) 293-308-297=899
9. So. Carolina (+47) 298-300-301=900
10. LSU (+48) 291-302-307=900
T-11. Vanderbilt (+49) 295-300-306=901
T-11. Georgia (+49) 294-303-304=901
13. Baylor (+52) 299-306-299=904
14. Arizona State (+53) 293-309-303=905
15. Okla. State (+54) 304-302-300=906
T-16. Tennessee (+55) 300-305-302=907
T-16. Miss. State (+55) 292-311-304=907
18. Virginia (+57) 301-315-293=909
Vanderbilt Individual Results
T-28. Morgan Baxendale (+11) 74-73-77=224
T-28. Courtney Zeng (+11) 70-77-77=224
T-51. Abbey Carlson (+15) 76-75-77=228
T-65. Louise Yu (+18) 80-76-75=231
T-73. Virginia Green (+20) 75-76-82=233
