Eagles take top spot in Lion Classic

Photo by: Henoc Kivuye

 

The Lady Eagles golf team participated in the Midwestern State Invitational during spring break week.

The team fought against cold temperatures and high winds during their rounds. Sophomore Anna Cortadellas took first in individual scoring, pushing the team to finish in third overall.

Highs of 50 degrees coupled with winds blowing at a constant 20 miles per hour made for a challenging start to the tournament, according to coach Greg Lynn.

“The conditions were horrible,” Lynn said. “As we were starting up the first round, it was so cold that some of our athletes actually couldn’t stop shivering while waiting to tee off.”

Sophomore Anna Arrese Cortadellas overcame this early chill during her first round, sharing the first place individual spot with Hee-Leina Kim from Colorado State University.

Cortadellas’ first round performance put the Lady Eagles close to the top of the team scores as well. They stood in third place within the overall pool of 18 teams for the first round, three shots behind the Midwestern State Mustangs.

Other members of the Lady Eagles also made strong first impressions on the Wichita Falls Country Club Course.

Senior Sarah Harper posted three birdies and ended the first round tied for fifth place after shooting a 76.

Junior Catherine Odgers, senior Morgan Dockery and freshman Audrey Meisch shot 83, 86 and 88 respectively.

Less than ideal weather conditions continued into the second round of play on Tuesday.

Meisch took the opportunity to come back strong for round two despite the weather, knocking 11 strokes off of her previous round of 77. She later shed some light on how she transitioned, taking it one step at a time.

“Ultimately, I played steady and didn’t allow one bad shot to affect my next one during the second round,” Meisch said.

Harper ended her second round tied for eighth with an 81 on the 5,875-yard course.

Dockery finished with an 86 and Odgers posted a second round score of 90.

Cortadellas continued to defy the inclement weather conditions, shooting two over par to end the round with a 74 and an individual win at the tournament.

Her success at the Midwestern Invitational marks her fifth individual win.

The Lady Eagles ended the invitational with a total score of 635 and a third place finish in Wichita Falls. The Mustangs from Midwestern State finished first at 623, only 12 shots better than the Lady Eagles.

The team came in unranked but managed to beat two ranked competitors during the tournament. No. 19 Southwestern Oklahoma State University finished with a 653, and No. 20 Newman University finished tied for fourth with a 643.

Meisch showed perseverance uncharacteristic of many freshman athletes during her second round recovery, according to Lynn.

“Audrey did improve,” Lynn said. “Her ball striking really helped carry her through to a better score in the second round.”

Meisch herself broadened the spectrum and commented on the effect that her first year of collegiate golf has had on her ability.

“Playing in tournaments as a freshman has really helped me improve by showing me my strengths and weaknesses in high pressure situations,” Meisch said.

Both the men and women of the Eagles golf program participated in the Lion Classic during their first week back from the break.

Though the men had a weeklong break, Coach David Lynn established the readiness of the team before the Lion Classic took place on Monday.

“About half of the guys stayed in town and used the practice facilities as usual,” Lynn said. “The other half went various places for their week off, but they all got the chance to practice before and are prepared.”

Both teams faced fairly harsh weather during the Lion Classic similar to that of the Midwestern Invitational.

Temperatures dipped low enough to cause the normal 8:30 a.m. start time to be switched over to a shotgun start at 11 by tournament officials.

Senior Logan Herbst and freshman Sam Johnston both finished among the top 10 and led the Eagles to a two-stroke win over Dallas Baptist University.

Cortadellas, who led after the first round, finished in second, as did her team at the Lion Classic.

The Eagles will participate in the Central Oklahoma Invitational April 1 and 2. The Lady Eagles will be competing in the Southwest Classic on the same day.