FRANKLIN, Tenn. – Newcomer Olivia Wood paced Vanderbilt women’s golf to a 2-under-par 282 to stand third after 18 holes at the Mason Rudolph Championship.
Wood, playing in her second tournament as a Commodore, fired a 3-under 68 to lead Vanderbilt on day one. The sophomore carded five birdies and provided the highlight of the day with a hole-out eagle from the fairway on the par-4 seventh. Wood sits in a tie for third on the individual leaderboard, just one stroke off the leaders.
Senior Ava Merrill closed with a birdie-birdie finish to join Wood under par on the day with a 1-under 70. Kathryn Ha and Sara Im each posted rounds of 1-over 72 while Angelina Tolentino rounded out the scoring lineup with a 3-over 74.
“I was really proud of our fight today and especially the way we stayed patient all day long and finished strong,” head coach Greg Allen said. “It was a very up-and-down round where we made a bunch of bogeys early, then birdies with a couple eagles in there on nos. 5, 6 and 7, then bogies again, then some birdies to finish.
“It’s not always easy playing at home because of the expectations but I thought our girls handled it well today. We need to come out tomorrow and continue to take care of the things that we can control. We are still early in the season but I really like who this team is becoming. They are a fun group to coach. They make every day exciting!”
On the individual side, Claire Henson posted a 2-under 69, marking the lowest round of her collegiate career. Elizabeth Rudisill also finished under par with a 70 while notching six birdies. Macie Brown came home in 79 strokes.
“It was really good to see Claire and Rudy play well,” said Allen. “Claire is coming off a redshirt year, so it’s been a minute since she’s repped the black and gold and she played great. I think today’s round was a very positive step in the right direction for Rudy as she continues to get her game back on track."
Florida leads the field at 6-under with Purdue in second at 3-under. Vanderbilt, one-stroke back in third, and Arizona State at 1-under round out the four teams below par.
Vanderbilt will play alongside Florida and Purdue in Saturday’s second round. The action begins at 8:30 a.m. while the Commodore lineup will tee off at 10:10 a.m.
Admission to the 2026 Mason Rudolph Championship is free. Live scoring for all three rounds is available on Scoreboard by Clippd.