MSUB Women's Golf Recap 9/28/15

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Monday, September 28, 2015 Yellowjacket women set new team single-round record on Day 1 at NCAA Preview tourney

Shooting a program-record team total of 297 on Day 1 of the NCAA Division II National Preview tournament, the MSUB women’s golf team is currently in fifth place.

AURORA, Colo. – Setting a program record for team score in a single round, the Montana State University Billings women’s golf team finished with a 297 on Day 1 of the NCAA Division II National Championship Preview tournament and sits in fifth place after the first round of action at CommonGround Golf Course on Monday.

“Our women played very well today,” commented MSUB head coach Shawn O’Brien. “I am very proud of the way we finished our last three holes. We always try to play our last three holes at three-over par, and today we played them at even-par.”

MSUB has three players currently in the top-20 among individuals at the tournament, with Kortney McNeil leading the way with a 1-under par 71 to tie for sixth place. The freshman led the Yellowjackets with four birdies on the day, and added in 11 pars her first time through the course.

“The second thing we did well allowing us to score well was not having to take big numbers throughout the day,” O’Brien said. “We counted only one double bogie.”

The highlight of the day for McNeil came on the green of the par-4, 428-yard 16th hole as she faced a 30-foot putt to save par. The true freshman connected firmly and watched as her ball broke from right to left over a ridge and into the cup to keep her even on the back nine.

“I was very happy to see Kortney turn in a round under par,” O’Brien said. “She has been so close every round and to see her finish it off was a great feeling.”

Anna DeMars finished the first round with a 1-over par 73 at the par-72, 6,310-yard course, and the freshman is currently tied for 12th place at the event. DeMars had three birdies on the day, including back-to-back putts on holes 14 and 15 to save a pair of strokes.

On the par-3, 155-yard 14th hole, DeMars lined up her 7-iron nicely out of the tee box to set up a six-foot birdie putt. Narrowly missing a 10-foot eagle putt on the par-5, 454-yard 15th hole, DeMars tapped in the birdie putt as she was 2-under par through the first six holes on the back nine.

Anna DeMars putting for eagle on the 15th hole.

Also in the top-20 for MSUB was Bailee Dexter, as she was one stroke behind DeMars with a 74 in Round 1. On the par-3, 125-yard sixth hole, Dexter drilled the green out of the box with her 8-iron and tapped in a six-foot putt for her second of two birdies on the day. Dexter also followed DeMars’s lead, saving a stroke with a birdie on the long 15th hole.

“Mariah helped the women play the par-3 holes very well,” O’Brien commented regarding assistant coach Mariah Cleveland’s advice on the short holes.

Finishing the first round with a 79 was junior captain Haley Shackelford, who had a birdie on the par-5, 513-yard seventh hole. Shackelford is currently tied for 56th place through the first round.

Sophomore Sammy Walter completed the field for MSUB, shooting an 80 on Day 1 to sit in a tie for 65th. One of Walter’s two birdies on the day came on the par-5, 500-yard 11th hole, and she also saved a stroke on the 15th.

Atop the leaderboard and within reach of MSUB after the first round is Tarleton State, which shot a team score of 289 to lead second-place University of West Florida by two strokes. TSU’s Sarah Gee is tied with Newman’s Courtney Zietsman for first place, as each player shot a 3-under par 69 on the first day of the event.

The Yellowjackets are the lone team from the Great Northwest Athletic Conference competing among the 20-team field.

The second and final round begins with a shotgun tee time of 8:30 a.m. Tuesday morning. Live results will be available via Golf Stat at this link.

“I am excited for tomorrow to see if we can continue this momentum,” O’Brien said. “We are a good team, and we need to continue this success so each of these women knows how it feels. We will be in this position a lot in the future.”

THE BUZZ: MSUB’s previous single-round team record was 298, set at the Yellowjacket Fall Invite in 2013…McNeil’s 71 was one stroke away from tying MSUB’s individual single-round record of 70 set by Kalli Stanhope at the Rocky Mountain Invite in the 2011-12 season…McNeil was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day.

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