Blue Hen Invitational was a Win all the way around for Seton Hall

   OK, this one’s a little late, but in searching through some of the results of the various fall tournaments, I came across one I thought was still worth a recap. Hey, there was a lot going on and in my pursuit of the high school postseason scene, it just fell through the cracks. I’m on the lookout for results from Saturday’s City 6 Championship at Galloway National Golf Club, but it might take a day or so for the players to thaw out from weather that was not conducive to great golf. Speaking of which …

   I remember Sunday, Oct. 21 because I caught a loop at Stonewall that day and it was cold and the wind was absolutely howling.

   Meanwhile, in Rehoboth Beach, Del., Seton Hall, behind individual champion Lizzie Win, a junior from Sylvania, Ohio, outlasted host Delaware to capture the team title in the Blue Hen Invitational at Rehoboth Beach Country Club.

   The Pirates had put a nose in front in the afternoon of a double round on a comparatively tranquil Saturday with a 9-over 293. Earlier in the day, Seton Hall and the Blue Hens had each posted a solid 3-over 287. But Delaware fell three shots behind with a 12-over 296 in the afternoon.

   That Sunday, though, the 26-over 310s carded by both Seton Hall and Delaware were the best team rounds of the day in the difficult conditions and it was enough for the Pirates to maintain their three-shot edge. Seton Hall captured the title with a 38-over 890 total with Delaware taking second with an 893 total.

   It was the fourth team title for Seton Hall’s second-year head coach Natalie Desjardins.

Georgetown, which defeated runnerup Seton Hall in the Big East Championship last spring, finished third in the Blue Hen, closing with a solid 311 for an 899 total that left it six shots behind Delaware.

   Penn posted a 316 in the cold and wind to take fourth at 55-over 907, eight shots behind Georgetown. High Point was another shot behind the Quakers in fifth in the 13-team field at 908 after a final-round 317.

   Seton Hall got strong showings from both Win and junior Maddie Sager, the 2015 PIAA Class AAA runnerup at Owen J. Roberts, particularly on the opening day.

   Win fired a sparkling 2-under-par 69 over the 5,932-yard, par-71 Rehoboth Beach layout to get her started toward the individual title. She added a 3-over 74 in the afternoon and then battled the elements to post a 2-over 73 Sunday that was probably a better round of golf than the 69 she shot Saturday, for a 3-over 216 total that gave her the individual victory by two shots.

   Sager matched Win’s 2-under 69 in Saturday afternoon’s second round, including a birdie-eagle-birdie burst on holes 16 to 18, after opening with a 4-over 75. She finished up with a 78 Sunday to end up alone in fourth at 9-over 222.

   Junior Sammie Staudt, a former Coatesville standout, gave Seton Hall three players in the top 10 as she carded a final-round 78 to end up among the group tied for 10^th at 224. Staudt had opened with a solid 1-over 72.

   Carolina Ronchel Salas, a junior from Spain, matched par in the opening round with a 71 and finished up with an 81 to join the group tied for 19^th at 228. Rounding out the Seton Hall lineup was sophomore Mia Kness, the 2016 PIAA Class AAA champion as a senior at Peters Township who also closed with an 81 to end up among the group tied for 39^th at 235.

   Gianna Tomeo, a senior from Bradenton, Fla., competed as an individual and finished 68^th at 256.

    High Point’s Sarah Kahn, a freshman from Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., held the individual lead at the end of Saturday’s double round as she matched Sager’s afternoon 69 after opening up with an even-par 71. But Kahn, like just about everybody else, struggled in the difficult conditions Sunday, carding a 78 that left her two shots behind Win in second at 5-over 218.

   Georgetown was led by Alexa Popowitz, a senior from Boca Raton, Fla. who finished alone in third at 8-over 221. Popowitz also played well in Saturday’s double round, posting a 1-under 70 and a 2-over 73. But her final-round 78 left her three shots behind Kahn and five behind the winner Win.

   Five players finished a shot behind Seton Hall’s Sager in a tie for fifth at 10-over 223, including a pair of players from Penn, Christina Park, a senior from San Diego, and Mary Shin, a freshman from Irvine, Calif. Park carded a final-round 77 after posting a pair of 2-over 73s in Saturday’s double round while Shin’s 3-over 74 was one of the better rounds in Sunday’s final round.

   Delaware was led by junior Ariane Klotz, the New Caledonia import who got a share of second place in last spring’s Colonial Athletic Association Championship. Klotz matched Win’s 2-over 73 in the final round to join the group tied for fifth at 223.

   Rounding out the quintet at 223 were James Madison’s Lauren Comegys, a junior from Lakeway, Texas, and Rutgers’ Ashleigh Greenham, a graduate student from England. Comegys had a final-round 73 while Greenham’s 1-over 72 was the best score of the final round, the Londoner probably feeling right at home in the cold, windy conditions.

   Like Seton Hall, Delaware had four players in the top 20 in the individual standings including freshmen Sophia Dieter and Mackenzie Dieter out of Jupiter, Fla. who look like they might very well be twins.

   Sophia Dieter had solid rounds of 73 and 72 in Saturday’s double round before finishing up with a 79 to join the group tied for 10^th at 224. Mackenzie Dieter bettered par with an opening round of 1-under 70 before adding a pair of 79s to finish among the group tied for 19^th at 228.

   In between the Dieters for the Blue Hens was Thitaree Sakulbunpanich, a sophomore from Thailand who finished among the group tied for 13^th at 225. Sakulbunpanich matched par in the opening round with a 71 and added a 2-over 73 before finishing up with an 81.

   Rounding out the lineup for Delaware was Ashley Dingman, a senior from Fairfield, Calif. who finished in the group tied for 32^nd at 232 after a final-round 79.

   Aashaka Desai, a junior from the United Arab Emirates, competed as an individual and finished in the group tied for 62^nd at 250.

   Delaware maximized its role as the host team by entering an entire B team as well. The B Blue Hens finished last in the team standings with a 971 total. They were led by Valentina Mueller, a senior from Switzerland who finished among the group tied for 39^th at 235 after a final-round 79.

   Backing up Park and Shin for Penn was Rina Jung, a sophomore from Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. who finished among the group tied for 15^th at 226. Jung was solid in Saturday’s double round with a 71 and 72 before falling back in the final round with an 83.

   Leila Dizon, a freshman from Los Angeles, finished in the group tied for 46^th at 238 after a final-round 82 and freshman Olivia Traynor, the 2015 Inter-Ac League champion as a freshman at Notre Dame, rounded out the lineup for the Quakers as she finished among the group tied for 51^st at 240. Traynor’s second-round 75 was a counter before she, like many players in Sunday’s final round, struggled to a finishing 87.

   Yubin Huh, a senior from San Diego, competed as an individual for Penn and finished alone in 67^th at 255.