HIGHLANDS RANCH, Colo. — Vanderbilt established itself Friday at the Ron Moore Intercollegiate by taking a four-stroke lead ahead of the rest of the field.
Led by senior Celina Sattelkau, the Commodores finished their first round at the University of Denver Golf Club at 8-under-par, shooting a combined score of 280.
Sattelkau—tied for fourth—continued her pace from her top-five finish at the Mason Rudolph in September into Friday’s round by finishing with a 3-under-par 69. Sattelkau had only one bogey on an otherwise clean scorecard that included four birdies.
Lynn Lim and Virginie Ding both sit tied for eighth place after notching 2-under-par days on their scorecards. Freshman Tillie Claggett finished 1-under-par and is tied for 12th and Natasha Kiel (tied for 33rd) rounded out the Dores’ lineup by recording a 2-over-par 74.
Competing as an individual, Tess Davenport finished 5-over-par and is tied for 60th.
“I thought our girls showed a lot of toughness today,” Vandy head coach Greg Allen said.
Vanderbilt tackled some adversity in Denver not only by playing on unfamiliar terrain but also by playing in unseasonable weather.
“I don’t think the temperature got above 45 while we were on the course, so I’m really pleased with how we scored today,” Allen said. “We know there’s two more rounds but the girls are playing with a great deal of confidence and they know what we need to do over the weekend.”
The Commodores were clutch at the end of their rounds as three of five golfers—Claggett, Ding and Lim— birdied the par-5 18th hole. Seventeen total birdies and consistent par play shot Vandy up to the top of the leaderboard.
After Day 1, the Dores are four strokes ahead of New Mexico and eight in front of Denver.
Vanderbilt will continue their quest for their first win of the season beginning at 11 a.m. CT Saturday alongside New Mexico and host Denver. Live scoring for the event can be found HERE.
