Spartans Host IIAC Women's Golf
Oct 6, 2014
DUBUQUE, Iowa - The 2014 Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (IIAC) Women's Golf Championship begins this weekend, September 26-27, with the first 36 holes of the 72-hole Championship. This weekend's rounds will be played at Pheasant Ridge Golf Club in Cedar Falls, Iowa. The final 36 holes will be played October 3-4 at Dubuque Golf and Country Club in Dubuque. Play will begin at 10:00 a.m. on September 26 and at 9:00 a.m. on September 27. University of Dubuque is the host of the 2014 Women's Golf Championship.
Pairings for play on the first day are determined by team stroke averages. The top four 18-hole scores on courses of at least 5,800 yards have been used to determine team stroke averages. Players from the three teams with the lowest stroke average (Wartburg, Central, Luther) will play together as will players from the fourth-, fifth- and sixth-seeded teams (Loras, Coe, Simpson) and players from the seventh- and eighth-seeded teams (Dubuque, Buena Vista).
Pairings for play in rounds two, three, and four will be based on each school's cumulative championship total
Each school may enter five players for each round with the four best performances each day used to determine the team score.
AQ on the Line: In 2007, the NCAA expanded the size of the field for the Division III Women's Golf Championship and will again award automatic bids to qualifying conferences. The Iowa Conference women's golf champion will be the IIAC's automatic qualifier to the 2014 NCAA Division III Women's Golf Championship scheduled for May 12-15, 2015, at Mission Inn Golf Resort in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla. Oglethorpe University is the host institution.
About the 2014 Season: Five of eight Iowa Conference schools have posted top-three finishes in a tournament this fall. Seven-time defending champion Wartburg has the top team stroke average (321.2) followed by Luther (341.1), Central (344.0) and Loras (348.0). The Knights won the Luther Fall Invitational, took third at the Wisconsin-Eau Claire Georgianni Memorial Invitational and fourth at their home invitational and the Division III Midwest Classic.
Central won the Luther Sail Classic and the Central Fall Invitational while placing second at the Simpson Fall Invitational and the Pheasant Ridge Quadrangular. Loras won the Benedictine Fall Invitational while taking second at the Luther Sail Classic. Luther finished second at their home invitational and Coe placed third at the Simpson Fall Invitational.
Individually, Wartburg sophomore Rochelle Beardsley – the defending IIAC medalist and Player of the Year – has the top stroke average (77.9 in eight rounds), broke 80 in five of eight rounds and finished in the top 10 of each of Wartburg's four tournaments this fall. Five other Knights – Hannah Long (third, 81.6 in eight rounds), Morgan McMillan (fourth, 81.9 in eight rounds), Taylor Roberts (sixth, 82.8 in eight rounds), Molly McDonough (seventh, 82.8 in six rounds), Samantha Heinen (ninth, 83.8 in eight rounds) and Alyssa Noble (10th, 84.1 in eight rounds) – also rank among the top 10 in stroke average.
Outside of the Wartburg seven, Luther's Madeline Petellin (82.1 in five rounds) ranks fifth and Central's Kelsey Van Tasell (83.1 in seven rounds) ranks eighth. Van Tasell's teammate, Taylor Hill, has the second-best stroke average at 78.5, but has been limited to two rounds due to illness and is not expected to be in Central's lineup.
Two golfers have picked up medalist honors in competition this fall. Beardsley claimed victory at the Georgianni Memorial and the Luther Fall Invitational, while Van Tasell won the Luther Sail Classic and the Central Fall Invitational. Van Tasell and Shuey lead all IIAC players in top-5 finishes with three.
Beardsley has four of the league's top 13 rounds this fall, posting a 73 at the Georgianni Memorial, a 74 at the Luther Fall Invitational and 76s at the Wartburg Fall Invitational and the Division III Midwest Classic. She also posted a 79 in the first round of the Wartburg Invite. McMillan, Roberts and Long all have three rounds under 80.
Top Returning Individuals: Four All-Conference (top-10) performers return from last season's championship – Beardsley, McMillan, Roberts and Van Tasell. That figure, doesn't include Wartburg's Samantha Heinen. Heinen earned all-conference honors at the 2012 Championship where she finished fifth. Van Tasell (ninth in 2012), McMillan (ninth in 2011) and Roberts (eighth in 2012) are the only members of the group to earn multiple All-Iowa Conference honors.
Among the next 11, six return from 2013: Coe's Erin Lang (t-14th, 354), Dubuque's Lauren Smith (t-20th, 358), Loras' Dana Matykiewicz (t-14th, 354) and Mara Simonson (t-16th, 356) and Luther's Hannah Hagarty (t-16th, 356) and Madeline Petellin (t-20th, 358).
Probable Line-ups: Probable line-ups for the Conference Championship are listed below. Players in bold have previously competed in the Iowa Conference Championship.
Buena Vista Jasey Zander, Courtney Van Haaften, Alison Wedemeyer, Elizabeth Kim
Central Kelsey Van Tasell, Chelsey Shuey, Rachel Cassens, Christine Ausman, Cierra Pulse
Coe Jessica Franson, Erin Lang, Jade Hess, Chloe Crain, Tarissa Hagenow
Dubuque Lauren Smith, Amanda Harrop, Carlee Grunder, Abigail Perry
Loras Lauren Gonner, Mara Simonson, Dana Matykiewicz, Katie Lathrum, Emma Walsh
Luther Madeline Petellin, Hannah Hagarty, Lexi Graf, Sam Kraft, Kate Coyle
Simpson Coltyn Hunter, Courtney Mabeus, Lesley Pearey, Holly Baiotto, Allison McArtor
Wartburg Rochelle Beardsley, Morgan McMillan, Hannah Long, Taylor Roberts, Samantha Heinen
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9/21/2014 |
Wartburg College |
Golfer of the Week |
Women's Golf |
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9/14/2014 |
Wartburg College |
Golfer of the Week |
Women's Golf |
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9/7/2014 |
Wartburg College |
Golfer of the Week |
Women's Golf |
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8/31/2014 |
Wartburg College |
Golfer of the Week |
Women's Golf |
Previous IIAC women's golf Championship results can be found at:
http://www.iowaconference.com/sports/2010/9/29/WGOLF_IIACChampionship.aspx
