With a leaderboard that looks a little like one you would
have found at a District One Championship a few years ago, Penn State grabbed
the team lead with two sub-par rounds on Day 1 of the Nittany Lion Invitational Saturday at Penn State’s Blue Course.
Sophomore Madelein Herr, who captured the District One Class
AAA title two years ago as a senior at Council Rock North led the way for Penn
State as she is one of three players tied at the top of the individual
standings at 2-under-par 142 over the 6,341-yard, par-72 Blue Course layout.
She was joined in that group by Seton Hall sophomore Maddie
Sager, who was the runnerup in the PIAA Class AAA Championship two years ago as
a senior at Owen J. Roberts. That pair of former District One stars were joined
in the leading trio by Maryland’s Laura Van Respaille, a sophomore from France.
Herr notched a pair of 1-under 71s to get her share of the
top spot. Sager earned a trip to this summer’s U.S. Women’s Amateur at San
Diego Country Club and the experience of competing at that level seems to have
given her a confidence boost. She finished sixth at William & Mary
Invitational. Sager opened with a 2-under 70 Saturday morning and added an
even-par 72 in the afternoon.
Two other Penn State juniors who are former District One
standouts, Jackie Rogowicz, a two-time District One champion at Pennsbury and Cara
Basso, who won the PIAA Class AA title as a sophomore at Villa Maria Academy in
2012, were in a group of three players tied for fourth at 1-under 143.
Rogowicz, coming off an individual title at Willaim &
Mary, matched par in the opening round with a 72 and added a 1-under 71 in the
afternoon. Basso added an even-par 72 to her opening-round 71.
Rogowicz and Basso were joined at 1-under 143 by Harvard’s
Anna Zhou, a junior from Palo Alto, Calif. who fired a 2-under 70 in the
afternoon after opening up with a 73.
Herr, Rogowicz and Basso helped Penn State register a
1-under 287 in the morning and a 2-under 286 in the afternoon for a 3-under 573
total. Van Respaille, whose afternoon 68 was the best round of the day, led the
Terrapins to a second round of 6-under 282 as they creeped within two shots of
Penn State at 1-under 575.
Delaware is 14 shots behind Maryland in third at 13-over 589
after rounds of 300 and 289. Sager led the Pirates to a share of fourth place
with Ivy League champion Princeton at 15-over 591. Seton Hall opened with a
4-over 292 and added a 299 in the afternoon. Princeton opened with a 299 and
added a 4-over 292 in the afternoon.
Also for Penn State, junior Lauren Waller, the PIAA Class
AAA runnerup as a senior at Canon-McMillan in 2014, is tied for 12th
after carding a pair of 73s for a 2-over 146 total and Kamerine Taylor, a
junior from Dublin, Ohio, is alone in 68th place at 160 after
posting a pair of 80s.
Penn State coach Denise St. Pierre took advantage of being
the tournament host to send five more members of her team out to compete as
individuals and make their case to be included in the five that are counted for
the team in future tournaments.
And Ashni Dhruva, a sophomore from Katy, Texas, made a
pretty strong statement as she matched par with a 72 in the afternoon after an
opening-round 77 and is tied for 19th at 5-over 149.
A couple of Penn State’s young players bounced back with
solid afternoon rounds after struggling in the opening round. Freshman Olivia
Zambruno, who won the PIAA Class AA individual title last fall as a senior at
Greensburg Central Catholic, is tied for 41st as she matched par in
the afternoon with a 72 after opening with an 81. Sophomore Megan McLean, a
Voorhees High product, fired a 1-under 71 in the afternoon after opening with
an 88 and is tied for 59th at 159.
Ariana Coyle Diaz, a senior from Ireland, and Julia
Alhenould, a freshman from Kuwait, are in the group tied for 73rd at
165. Coyle Diaz had rounds of 82 and 83 while Alhenould opened with an 83 and
added an 82 in the afternoon.
Delaware’s Ariane Klotz, a sophomore from New Caledonia, is
tied for seventh with two Maryland players, Xiaolin Tian, a sophomore from
China, and Ludovica Farina, a junior from Italy, at even-par 144.
Klotz carded a 2-under 70 in the afternoon after opening
with a 74. Tian added a 1-under 71 to her opening-round 73 and Farina opened
with a 1-under 71 and added a 73 in the afternoon.
Seton Hall also got a strong showing from freshman, Mia
Kness, who claimed the PIAA Class AAA title as a senior at Peters Township last
fall. Kness, who also earned a trip to this summer’s U.S. Women’s Amateur,
opened with a 74 and added a 76 in the afternoon and is tied for 24th
at 150.
Sophomore Sammie Staudt, another former District One
standout at Coatesville, is competing as an individual for Seton Hall and she’s
making a strong case for inclusion in the starting five for the Pirates. Staudt added a 1-over 73 to her opening-round
75 and is tied for 16th at 4-over 148.
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