Thursday, October 29, 2015

The fall season of women’s golf wrapped up with the final four tournaments Dennis Rose Invitational on Oct. 26 and 27 in Waikoloa, Hawaii. Saint Martin’s and Concordia took part in the tournament, with SMU’s Jennifer Liedes winning the individual title with a three-round score of 225. The Saints placed third overall with a 968 team score, just one stroke back of first place. Concordia’s Lynsie Furuya placed second individually at 229, leading the Cavaliers to a fourth place team finish.

LEADING LIEDES: Liedes won her final two tournaments of the fall season with the Dennis Rose Invitational and the competitive Western Washington Inviataional on Oct. 12 and 13 in Bellingham, Wash. Liedes topped the 62-player field which included five GNAC schools, the most at any tournament in the fall. Liedes shot a two-round 1-under-par 145 and a 2-under-par 71 in the first round. The Saints were the top-placing GNAC team, placing second overall with a two-round socre of 613.

Western Washington placed third overall at its tournament. The Vikings were led by Jenn Paul who placed second overall with an even-par 146. She also shot the top second round at 2-under-par 71. Samantha Miller for Northwest Nazarene placed fifth individually with a two-round 151 score, leading the Crusaders to a fifth place finish. Simon Fraser placed 10th overall and Concordia finished 12th.

EARNING THEIR ‘JACKETS: Montana State Billings finished its season early at the MSUB Yellowjacket Fall Invite on Oct. 8 and 9 in Huntley, Mont. The Yellowjackets placed first overall out of four teams, taking the top-six spots in the tournament. Kortney McNeil ended her strong freshman fall season with an exclamation point, winning the individual title with a two-round score of 1-over-par 147. Haley Shackelford, Bailee Dexter, Anna DeMars, Shealyn Hafer and Sammy Walters took the next five spots respectively.

FINAL VOYAGE: The Vikings took part in their final tournament of the fall season at the Sonoma State Invitational on Oct. 19 and 20 in Sonoma, Calif. The Vikings tied for fourth overall at the two-round tournament. Paul led the Vikings again, tying for seventh overall with a two-round score of 154. Kristen Hansen was a top-20 finisher for the Vikings in 17th place with a 157 total.

VICTORIA INVITE: Simon Fraser also competed on Oct. 19 and 20, but at the University of Victoria Invitational in Victoria B.C. The Clan’s Emily Leung placed fifth overall at 155 to lead the team to a fifth place overall team finish. Belinda Lin tied for eighth overall two strokes back of Leung at 157 and Michelle Waters tied for 11th at 159.

SPRING AWAKENING: Teams will take the next four months off before the beginning of the spring golf season. Northwest Nazarene opens its season with the Cal Baptist Invitational on Feb. 22 and 23 in Riverside, Calif. Simon Fraser will be at the Cal State East Bay Invitational on March 7 and 8 in Vallego, Calif. Montana State Billings will host the MSUB Spring Invitational on March 26 and 27 in Huntley, Mont. The GNAC Women’s Golf Championships will be hosted at the Coeur d’Alene Resort in Idaho on April 18 and 19.