KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. – Ansley Bowman and Ella Ofstedahl each shot 76, and the Georgia Southern women’s golf team tied for ninth of 42 teams at the Edwin Watts Kiawah Island Classic Tuesday.
Georgia Southern (+36) finished 11 shots out of fifth, held by Western Kentucky (+25), and College of Charleston (+8) won the tournament in tough final round conditions. No team shot under 300 today, only one individual shot under par and only three others shot par.
Bowman (+1) tied for ninth for her second career top-10 and her first this season. Murray State’s Lucila Puente Rodriguez (-5) fired a 68 to set up a three-way tie for first. Eagle Ella Ofstedahl tied for 32nd and Natalie Petersen tied for 79th in the field of 218 competitors.
Julianna Collett shot 78 today, while Petersen and Noonan each recorded an 81.
The Kiawah Spring Classic is tabbed as the largest collegiate golf tournament in the country. GS tied for eighth in par-4 scoring and tied for 10th in par-5 scoring in the large field.
The story
Bowman led the squad with three birdies in the round and played her final nine holes 1-under with birdies on holes 2 and 7. She wound up shooting an even-par 36 on the front nine.
After struggling on the par-5 8th hole, her first of the day, Ofstedahl made par or better on 14 of her final 17 holes. She played her last eight of the holes of the day even with a birdie on the par-4 7th, her last of the tourney.
Collett had a stretch of five holes with par or better in the middle of her round with a birdie on the 2nd hole.
Quotables from head coach Emily Kuhfeld
“Today was one of the windiest days we have faced this year in competition, and I am proud with how the team bounced back after a difficult start.”
“Finishing in the top-10 in this large field was a good performance for the team, and we are excited with the possibility and improvement we are seeing with all five of them.”
“Ansley hung in there today, making key putts and finished with a top-10 individual finish. It is always good to see some of the team’s hard work pay off a little bit, and we are excited to head to the Tampa area for our next event in about a week and a half!”
Next up
The Eagles head to the Spring Break Shootout March 11-13 at Lake Jovita Country Club in Dade City, Fla. GS won the event last year for the first team title in program history.