MSUB Women's Golf Fall 2015 Preview

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Monday, September 7, 2015 Yellowjacket women’s golf fall preview

After taking second place at the GNAC Championships in each of the last two seasons, MSUB’s women’s golf team has high goals for the 2015-16 season, which begins this weekend.

BILLINGS, Mont. – Finishing as the runner up at each of the last two Great Northwest Athletic Conference Women’s Golf Championships, Montana State University Billings has high goals set for the 2015-16 season which begins this weekend.

The Yellowjackets return three golfers from last season’s second-place team, including junior Haley Shackelford and sophomores Bailee Dexter and Sammy Walter.

“Our goal is to win the GNAC championship this year, and that is definitely a reality that is in front of our women if they take advantage of the opportunity,” said MSUB head coach Shawn O’Brien. “The three freshmen we brought in are going to have a lot of success within our team. The team is tight-knit as a group on and off the golf course, and that is going to push each of them to become better and better throughout the season.”

Dexter was MSUB’s top finisher at the GNAC Championships last season, and she finished the year with an overall average score of 82.8 over 16 rounds.

Walter was MSUB’s top overall golfer as a true freshman, earning second-team all-GNAC honors after posting a conference-eighth best scoring average of 81.2 over a dozen rounds.

Shackelford was close behind, also earning second-team honors with an average round of 82.2 as a sophomore.

“I’m excited because we are all young, and we are ready to get on that golf course and compete,” said Shackelford. “Every year the goal is to win a GNAC championship, and we gained three great new players so I am excited about that.”

Junior Haley Shackelford.

“It is going to be nice that our freshmen can rely on those three to come in and show them how we have done things,” O’Brien said on his returners. “All three got some valuable playing experience last year, and that’s only going to help them this fall and this spring.”

Joining the trio of returners are three talented freshmen in Anna DeMars, Shealyn Hafer, and Kortney McNeil. DeMars and Dexter were high-school teammates at Broadwater High (Townsend, Mont.), and she comes to MSUB after winning nine letters in golf, volleyball and basketball.

Hafer, a Butte, Mont., native, was also a three-sport standout in her prep career in golf, basketball and softball. She earned all-state honors four times in golf, and helped the Bulldogs to three second-place finishes at state.

McNeil is a Billings Senior High School graduate, who ran the Broncs’ girls’ basketball team as a point guard in addition to her four-year career as a golfer. She is a two-time Class AA state champion, and she helped the Broncs capture the 2012 team state title in golf.

“We are going to rely on our three freshmen as much as we rely on the upperclassmen to do their job,” said O’Brien.

“The combination of having six women who can all play on a daily basis is going to help us push some of the top schools in our conference.”

The Yellowjackets will open their fall schedule with a match play event against Rocky Mountain College, the first of six events on tap in 2015. Among MSUB’s four road tournaments is the NCAA Division II National Preview, scheduled for Sept. 28-29 at CommonGround Golf Course in Denver.

The Yellowjacket Fall Invitational is scheduled for Oct. 8-9 at Pryor Creek Golf Club in Huntley, Mont., and it will be the final tournament of the fall before the ‘Jackets begin the championship portion of their schedule in March, 2016.

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