FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Friday, April 1, 2016 Yellowjacket women complete opening round at WNMU Invitational Friday
MSUB’s women’s golf team shoots a 312 in the opening round of the Western New Mexico Invitational Friday, and is currently in 17th place. GOODYEAR, Ariz. – Finishing the first round at the Western New Mexico Invitational on Friday afternoon, the Montana State University Billings women’s golf team shot a team score of 312 and is currently in 17th place among the 24-team, NCAA Division II west region field of competition. Playing at the par-72, 5,900-yard layout at Palm Valley Golf Club, sophomore Bailee Dexter shot a 5-over par 77 and is tied for 49th place to lead the Yellowjackets. Freshman Anna DeMars and sophomore Sammy Walter were each one stroke behind each with a 78, as the duo is tied for 58th place after the first day of action. Freshman Kortney McNeil shot a 79 in Round 1 and is tied for 68th, and Haley Shackelford completed the field of five for MSUB in 106th place with an 84. Also competing for the ‘Jackets as an individual is freshman Shealyn Hafer, who is tied for 109th with a score of 85. The second and final round of the event will tee off Saturday morning with a shotgun start.
Carding the best round of the day for the ‘Jackets, Dexter made 11 pars and a birdie her first time through the course. She was the lone player for MSUB not to bogey Hole 10, a tricky, 365-yard par-4 that cost the team several strokes in the round. Dexter had a string of four straight pars on holes 7-through-10, and was even overall on holes 7-through-15. DeMars fell victim to a double bogey on the 10th hole, but was solid on the front nine as she notched an even-par 36. Her single birdie on the day came on the par-5, 505-yard second hole, as she saved a stroke. Walter matched DeMars’s score by notching a pair of birdies, on the par-4, 425-yard 11th hole and again on the par-5, 445-yard 18th. Similar to DeMars, McNeil struggled with a triple bogey on the 10th hole, but recovered nicely and led the team with five birdies in the round. Only Michelle Picca of Point Loma Nazarene University had more birdies (6) than McNeil, and MSUB’s lead golfer added six pars to her scorecard in the opening round. Making par on holes 15-through-18, Shackelford put together a solid string of shots for the ‘Jackets. Overall she had nine pars in the first round. Matching McNeil’s triple bogey on Hole 10, Hafer recovered immediately and carded her lone birdie of the day on the very next hole with a 4 on the par-5, 425-yard 11th. Hafer added five pars on the front nine and one more on the back in her opening round. Four players broke the mark of 70 on Day 1, and Marisa Toivonen of Augustana University is the individual leader with a 68. Ann Parmerter and Sarah Kim of Dallas Baptist, and Sarah Gee of Tarleton State all carded a 69 and are one stroke back. Tarleton State leads the team race after the first round, posting a score of 285 and holding a narrow, three-stroke edge over second-place Northeastern State (288). Yellowjacket freshman Anna DeMars shot a 78 in Round 1 for the Yellowjackets on Friday.
Also competing in the event from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference are Western Washington University (303, eighth place), and Saint Martin’s University (305, ninth place). Dexter was picked as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day for the Yellowjackets. NEXT UP: Play resumes Saturday with the second and final round. Live statistics will be available through the Golf Stat link here. Western New Mexico University Invitational – Round 1 Results Palm Valley Golf Club | Goodyear, AZ | April 1, 2016 Team – 1. Tarleton State (285); 17. MSU Billings, 312. Individual – 1. Marisa Toivonen, Augustana, 68; T49. Bailee Dexter, MSUB, 77; T58. Anna Demars, MSUB, 78. T58. Sammy Walter, MSUB, 78. T68. Kortney McNeil, MSUB, 79. T106. Haley Shackelford, MSUB, 84. T109. Shealyn Hafer, MSUB, 85. --@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--