2018 SLIAC Women's Golf Championship Preview
It may be only three weeks into the start of the school year but it is already championship season for women's golf members of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The six schools sponsoring women's golf in the SLIAC will compete early next week in the first conference championship of the 2018-19 year.
This year's SLIAC Women's Golf Championship will be hosted by MacMurray College and held at The Links in Jacksonville, Illinois on Monday and Tuesday, September 24-25. Monday's tee time will be 11 a.m. while tee time on Tuesday is set for 9:00 a.m. Teams will play 18 holes on each day. You can follow both rounds of the tournament live HERE
Spalding University is the reigning SLIAC Champion, after cruising to the conference's first-ever women's golf title last year. The Golden Eagles had one tournament earlier this season canceled due to weather but are coming off a 1st place finish last weekend in a Tri-Match at Thomas More College. Spalding shot a 361 in their one round with Kassidy Wallin leading the way. Wallin picked up a first-place individual finish, shooting an 85, and is the defending SLIAC Individual Champion after shooting a 165 in the SLIAC Championship last fall. Teammate Taylor Thompson will be another player to watch. Thompson shot a SLIAC record 78 in the opening round of the SLIAC championship last season, forcing Wallin into a playoff hole for the individual title. Sophomore Olivia Schmidt is coming off a third-place showing at Thomas More.
Fontbonne University comes into the tournament having last played two weeks ago in the Rhodes Classic, placing 7th as a team. Hannah Householder has paced the Griffins this fall, with an average of 86 strokes per round; garnering SLIAC Player of the Week honors on September 12. Sammi Charpentier is not far off the pace with an 87 average while Grace Harlin and Maddi Vandervort are both averaging 92 strokes per round.
Iowa Wesleyan University placed 3rd at the SLIAC Championship in 2017 but have not taken the course yet this fall. The Tigers return their top three golfers from last year's championship. Hannah Lien placed 10th with a 204 while Maggie Calease (213) and Darby Massner (219) took 12th and 13th place.
MacMurray College finished in 4th at last year's championships but made a 53 stroke improvement from round one to the second one. They will be looking to continue that improvement this season but have had just one tournament appearance to prepare. The Highlanders lone time on the course came in the Illinois College Fall Invite last week where Kaitlyn Brown (97 strokes) and Lauren Anderson (98 strokes) competed.
Eureka College made the biggest improvement at last year's championships by cutting off 79 strokes from day one to day two. The Red Devils will have a mix of veterans and newcomers this fall at the championship. They bring back their top two finishers from last year in Jaci Marshall and Samantha Sarnes but also welcome in newcomers Megan Masching and Sydni Neal.
After competing with just one golfer last fall Westminster College will send a full lineup this year including their lone representative from last year Rebecca Roth. Roth placed 9th individually last year with a 203 and has lowered her scoring average to 92.7 strokes per round this season including one top 20 finish. Joining her this year in the conference championship field are teammates Connar Hadley, Makayla Jackson, and Bailee Zemianek.
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