GREENSBORO, Ga. – The Vanderbilt women’s golf team is four strokes out of the lead at Reynolds Lake Oconee Invitational after completing 27 holes of play on Saturday.
The Commodores shared the tournament lead after 18 holes but collectively struggled on their closing nine holes to trail Texas Tech and Mercer entering play on Sunday.
The Commodores are 14-over-par and tied for third place among 17 teams after the first day. Barring inclement weather, they will return to the Reynolds Lake Oconee National Course for 27 holes on Sunday.
Head Coach Greg Allen said the Commodores didn’t play well enough Saturday, especially around the greens, to control their own fate.
“We weren’t very sharp in a lot of areas, didn’t make many birdies or play the par-5s well and couldn’t make putts. But I’m glad this is happening in February so we can learn from it and use it as motivation to get better in April and May,” Allen said. “After play ended, the girls put in some work on the practice green and it’ll be fun to watch them compete on Sunday. I’m excited about the opportunity tomorrow.”
Auston Kim paced the Commodores on Saturday. The reigning SEC Freshman of the Week finished the day at 1-over-par, and stands in a third-place tie among 105 players in the medalist competition.
Sophomore Morgan Baxendale is one stroke behind Kim, tied for 11th place at 2-over-par. Junior Abbey Carlson is tied for 24th place at 5-over-par. Senior Courtney Zeng and sophomore Louise Yu are tied for 39th place and 44th place, respectively. Sophomore Virginia Green, playing as an individual, is tied for 24th place.
The Commodores will finish the back nine of the second round early Sunday, then immediately return to the National course for the closing 18 holes.
Live results and pairings can be found at Golfstat.com.
Reynolds Lake Oconee Invitational Team Standings
T-3. Vanderbilt 446 292-154 (9)
Vanderbilt Individual Scores
T-3. Auston Kim +1 109 70-39 (9)
T-11. Morgan Baxendale +2 110 70-40 (9)
T-24. Abbey Carlson +5 113 77-36 (9)
T-39. Courtney Zeng +7 115 75-40 (9)
T-44. Louise Yu +8 116 77-39 (9)
Other Vanderbilt Participants
T-24. Virginia Green +5 113 75-38 (9)
