Results
KENNESAW, Ga. – The Illinois women's golf team finished in fourth place at the Henssler Financial Intercollegiate on Tuesday, its fifth-straight top-five finish. The Fighting Illini posted rounds of 295-294-296 for a final score of 885 (+21) at the Pinetree Country Club (Par 72, 6,032 yards).
"Conditions were very different today," said head coach Renee Slone. "The golf course got over an inch of rain last night, so it was pretty sloppy out there, especially early on, our first nine holes. I think from the scores, overall, they were a bit higher today, which was a reflection of those conditions. However, it's always a positive moving up the leaderboard on the final day. I still wouldn't say we had our 'A' game by any means, but we had one of the lower scores in the field today, and it's definitely good to end on a positive note."
Tristyn Nowlin led the Illini, carding rounds of 74-71-73 to finish with a 218 (+2) and a tie for eighth place, her second-straight top-10 finish. Swing Liu and Chayanid Prapassarangkul both finished at six-over-par in a tie for 18th. Liu posted a 75 (+3) in both the first and second rounds, and a 72 (E) in the final round, while Prapassarangkul carded a first-round score of 73 (+1), a 75 (+3) in the second round, and a final round of 74 (+2).
Tying for 41st with a 227 (+11), Bing Singhsumalee posted a 77 (+5) in both the first and final rounds, and a 73 (+1) in the second round. Grace Park finished in a tie for 50th, carding rounds of 73-77-79 to end up at 229 (+13) overall.
Competing as an individual, Dana Gattone shot a career-best score of 68 (-4) in the first round, a 79 (+7) in the second round and a 78 (+6) in the final round to finish nine-over-par and in a tie for 32nd.
The tournament was won by Kent State, with a score of 876 (+12). Purdue was close behind at 13-over-par, followed by Texas Tech (+14), Illinois and August (+23) in the top five. Maryland (+27) and Memphis (+27) tied for sixth, with Virginia Tech (+30), Southern Miss (+31), Troy (+34), Kennesaw State (+36), Eastern Michigan (+42), Chattanooga (+44) and Georgia Southern (+60) rounding out the field.
Purdue's August Kim and Pimnipa Panthong of Kent State tied as individual champions with a 213 (-3).
"We do have a couple weeks until Ohio State, so that's great that we have an opportunity to rest and recharge following this 12-day trip," said Slone. "It gives the team a chance to get rejuvenated and get caught up academically and personally. We have a few areas to tackle here with the team and individually so we can get things squared away and be well-prepared and be at our best as we head into the postseason."
UP NEXT
Illinois will have two weeks off before heading to Columbus, Ohio, for the Lady Buckeye Invitational on Saturday and Sunday, April 15-16. The Lady Buckeye Invitational will be the final tournament for the Orange and Blue before the Big Ten Championships on April 21-23.
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