Results (PDF)
MIDDLETOWN, Ohio – Battling unforgiving conditions on a challenging course layout, Trevecca Nazarene forged through the first round of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference Women’s Golf Championship to emerge as the frontrunner on Monday.
With winds gusting in excess of 40 mph, the women’s field completed their first round of 18 holes at Four Bridges Country Club following 9:30 a.m. tee-times in eight-minute intervals.
With Trevecca Nazarene defending back-to-back G-MAC titles on the links, the Trojans had the top four finishers when scorecards were turned in.
Leading the charge was two-time G-MAC Women’s Golf Athlete of the Month Alexa Rippy, who carded a first-round score of 81 (+9). TNU ended up finishing with a cumulative first-round team score of 337.
With two individuals in the top six (Eadoin Cronin, Chasey Rotondo), Ursuline (364) is second while Ohio Valley (383) is third with a pair in the top 10 (Victoria Nichols, Amanda Sabourin).
Alderson Broaddus (407) was led by Julia Heser’s 90 while Kentucky Wesleyan competed with two individuals.
After TNU teammates Kaylon King and Mikayla Dodson have secured medalist honors for the past two seasons, Rippy is doing her best to make it three different Trojans in as many years.
Rippy will carry a two-stroke lead over King (83) and a five-shot cushion over Dodson (86) going into Tuesday’s final round. Marlee Stecker is also in the hunt after she fired an 87.
After posting back-to-back bogeys on holes No. 6 and 7, Rippy was able to make the turn with her first birdie of the day – the par-4, 10th hole. She made par on three of her first four holes to begin the morning.
Rippy flourished on the back nine, finishing the last seven holes at even par, including a birdie on the par-3 15th hole.
“Coach (David Head) was telling us before that you have to be patient, you can’t get frustrated and 80 would be a very good score today,” Rippy said afterwards. “So we knew that coming in it was going to be a little bit higher and we just had to do our best and try to keep hitting as good of shots that we could with the weather.”
Tomorrow’s final round is scheduled to be a shotgun start format at 9 a.m. on Tuesday morning.