Hello Illini Fans!

Can you believe we are already approaching postseason? It is crazy how much time has flown by and it has been amazing to see how much the team has grown closer together over the past couple of months. April has definitely been jam packed with tournament play for us. We headed to South Carolina for our first time at the Clemson Invitational, came back to campus for about a day and a half, and then headed over to Columbus, Ohio to play at Ohio State's Lady Buckeye Invitational.

Our first trip to Lake Keowee, S.C. was so much fun. This was one of the first tournaments where the whole team was able to stay with one host family. They were so welcoming, and we are so appreciative to have had them as our hosts. Upon getting to the course we were excited to find a challenging course ahead of us; it was one of the hilliest we've seen. Plus, with some rain, riding in carts for our second round, and a thunderstorm delay halfway through that round, we had some new experiences out there which taught us how to really be patient and to stay in the moment. All in all, we had a great time. All the volunteers were so kind and during our dinners at the course. We participated in a ping pong tournament and an egg toss competition; some things we usually don't get to do at a tournament. Unfortunately, because of a thunderstorm and a huge downpour of rain, they had to cancel the third round of the tournament. Everyone felt really good about our team's energy and the way we were playing that day, and we were ready to keep it going at Ohio State.

Fast forward less than 48 hours and we were back on a bus headed to Columbus. For some of us, it was a first seeing the course and for others it was great to be back. Thankfully our 36-hole day avoided some of the rain and we were greeted with beautiful weather. As we talked about in our team meeting, this course is highly challenging. It all comes down to being strategic, making aggressive swings to conservative targets, and sometimes valuing the bogey. Our second day posed a new situation for us, with lots of rain and cold winds the conditions posed a tough challenge for everyone. With rain gloves on and hand warmers in our pockets, we took the course head on and just focused on keeping a good attitude, committing to our one-word commitment for the day, and keeping in mind our core value of gratitude. Overall, the team did a good job of staying patient and energetic in some tough conditions to fight until the end.

With another short break on campus, we will all go back to re-evaluate and touch up on a few things before we head to Cincinnati, Ohio for the Big Ten Conference Championship! We are so excited to represent the Fighting Illini at Big Tens and we are ready to bring home some hardware to Chambana. We are so thankful for all your support so far and we hope to see some Orange and Blue out at TPC River's Bend!

#WeWillWin

Ali Morallos

Follow the Illini

Stay tuned to FIGHTINGILLINI.com for all the latest information on Fighting Illini Women's Golf. Follow the Orange and Blue on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook for complete coverage.