Carson-Newman and Lincoln Memorial Tied For Lead After Round One of the 2016 South Atlantic Conference Women’s Golf Championship
MONROE, N.C. (TheSAC.com) – Lincoln Memorial University and Carson-Newman University share the first round lead in the South Atlantic Conference women's golf tournament Sunday. Both the Railsplitters and the Eagles posted identical scores of 312 on a blustery day at the Monroe Country Club (par 72, 5981 yards). Wingate University is the host for the 2016 SAC women's golf event.
Wingate and Queens University of Charlotte are tied for third place at 320, while Newberry College is fifth with 325. Coker College is sixth with 330, while Lenoir-Rhyne University is seventh with 331. The remainder of the team leader board includes Tusculum College (332), Anderson University (332), Mars Hill University (352) and Brevard College (359). Twelve schools and 60 student-athletes are participating in this year's SAC championship.
Carson-Newman freshman Taylor Hayes leads the tournament after day one. She shot an even-par 72, giving her a two-stroke lead over Lincoln Memorial freshman Lise Malherbe. Fifteen student-athletes shot rounds in the 70s, including four from the LMU Railsplitters (three members of the top five and one individual).
Hayes tops the SAC tourney statistical charts with six birdies. Malherbe has a first-round best 13 pars. She was the only student-athlete to play the par fours at even par Sunday. The shot of the day belongs to Lenoir-Rhyne freshman Chelsea Mansel, who carded an eagle on the par five, 471-yard number three hole. Mansel is tied for fourth place on the individual leader board following her first-round tally of 76.
The three-day, 54-hole SAC women's golf tournament continues Monday with 18 holes. Tee times begin at 8:30 a.m. (in nine-minute increments). LMU, Carson-Newman and Queens are in the final wave, beginning at 10:45 a.m.