MELBOURNE, Fla. – Three Vanderbilt women’s golfers fired under-par rounds to highlight an 8-under-par 280 final round for the team at the Moon Golf Invitational on Tuesday. The Commodores carded a 6-over-par tournament to earn a fourth-place finish in a field featuring 12 top-25 teams.
“I’m really proud of the way our girls came out ready to play today,” said head coach Greg Allen. “They battled from start to finish and we got to see a glimpse of the kind of team I believe we can be this year.”
Vanderbilt’s 280-stroke final round was the team’s best round this weekend. The last time the Dores notched a 280 was the final round of the Ron Moore Intercollegiate in October.
“I love how this group never got their heads down after the first round and kept pounding,” said Allen.
Sophomore Tillie Claggett carded five birdies, all on the back nine, on her way to a team-leading, 4-under-par 68 to close the tournament. She finished tied for 20th individually alongside teammate Virginie Ding. Ding turned in a clean card Tuesday, notching a season-low, 3-under-par final round to land herself in the top 20.
“Tillie and Ding were sharp today, and Celina and Ava did a nice job of staying patient and finishing strong,” said Allen.
Freshman Ava Merrill wrapped up her tournament with a 1-under par 71—her ninth under-par round of the season—that placed her tied for 44th individually. Graduate Celina Sattelkau rode an even-par final round to an eighth-place individual finish, her second top-10 finish of the year. Lynn Lim shot an 81.
“This field was loaded with highly ranked teams and it’s nice to get wins against some of them,” said Allen. “We also know there is still work to do and we need to continue striving to get better. We recognize the things we need to work on, and we’ll get back to work Thursday to prepare for the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate.”
Vanderbilt finished one stroke off the podium this weekend and ahead of five SEC foes. LSU captured the title for a second-straight year. The Commodores will return to action March 4-6 at the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate in South Carolina.
