Walker helps North Carolina stand in a tie for third at Kiawah Island

   Brynn Walker, the two-time PIAA Class AAA champion at Radnor, and North Carolina opened the 2017-2018 season with a strong showing in a pair of Labor Day rounds in the Ocean Course Invitational hosted by the College of Charleston at Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course in Kiawah, S.C.

   After opening up with a 2-under 71 over the 6,109-yard, par-73 Kiawah Island course  that hosted the 2012 PGA Championship, Walker added a 75 and is tied for ninth at even-par 146 in the individual standings.

   Walker struggled in qualifying in last month’s U.S. Women’s Amateur at San Diego Country Club, failing to make match play. But one of my most trusted sources (OK, it’s her mom) informed me that Walker caught a stomach bug in Southern California and it was all she could do to complete her two rounds.

   Walker helped the Tar Heels post rounds of 3-over 295 in the morning and an even-par 292 afternoon round to shared third place with Atlantic Coast Conference rival North Carolina State at 3-over 587. North Carolina finished one shot shy of earning the eighth and final berth in match play in last spring’s NCAA Championship and the Tar Heels are determined to do last year’s team a few shots better.

   North Carolina was led by a strong debut from freshman Ava Bergner of Germany who is alone in fourth in the individual standings after adding a 3-under 70 to her opening round of even-par 73 for a 3-under 143 total.

   In addition to Bergner and Walker, North Carolina also got solid outings from Kelly Whaley (74-73), a junior from Farmington, Conn. who is tied for 15^th at 1-over 147 and Bryana Nguyen (77-74), a senior from Columbia, Md. who is tied for 28^th at 5-over 151.

   Clementian Rodriguez, a junior from Venezuela, is tied for 67^th at 161 after rounds of 78 and 83. Rodriguez transferred to Chapel Hill from Washington. Mariana Ocano, a sophomore from St. Petersbug,  Fla. competing as an individual for the Tar Heels, also had a strong showing and is tied for 38^th after following up a 79 with an even-par 73.

   Southeast Conference representative Mississippi, getting strong showings from some of its youngsters, grabbed the team lead after two rounds with a pair of even-par 292s for an even-par 584 total. The next four spots in the team standings are occupied by ACC teams as Florida State (292-293) is a shot behind the Rebels at 1-over 585, the Tar Heels and N.C. State (294-293) are tied for third at 3-over 587 and Wake Forest (297-283) is fifth at 6-over 590.

   Reigning SEC champion Florida is alone in sixth place at 9-over 593 after rounds of 297 and 296.

Ole Miss was led by Conner Beth Ball, a freshman from Madison, Miss. who is alone in third place in the individual standings at 6-under 140. Ball debuted with a sparkling 5-under 68 before falling back with a 1-under 72 in the afternoon.

   Also for the Rebels, Pi-Lillebi Hermansson (78-71), a sophomore from Sweden is tied for ninth at even-par 146, Julia Johnson (76-71),  a freshman from St. Gabriel, La., is tied for 15^th at 1-over 147,   Kie Purdom (73-78), a junior from Lexington, Ky., is  tied for 29^th at 5-over 151 and Martina Fiori (88-82),  a junior from Italy is tied for 80^th at 170.

   Sitting atop the individual standings is Wake Forest’s Jennifer Kupcho, a junior from Westminister, Colo. who had rounds of 69 and 68 for a 9-under 137 total. Kupcho is one of the top returning players in the country and finished tied for second in the NCAA Championship after looking like the winner for a long time on the final day in the battle for the individual title at Rich Harvest Farms.

   Mississippi State’s Aubree Jones, a freshman from Covington, Tenn., had the day’s best round, a dazzling 7-under 66 in the afternoon and is alone in second place at 7-under 139, two shots behind Kupcho. Jones opened with an even-par 73.

   Following Ole Miss’ Ball in third and North Carolina’s Bergner in fourth were four players tied for fifth at 1-under 145. A pair from N.C. State’s Wolfpack, India Clyburn (70-75), a junior from England, and Laura Kowohl (72-73), a junior from Germany, accounted for half of that foursome.

   Rounding out that quartet were Florida’s Elin Esborn (75-70), a freshman from Sweden, and Wake Forest’s Siyun Liu (74-71), a sophomore from China.