There was a lot about this weekend’s Rio Verde Invitational
that was very familiar for Seton Hall.
The Pirates came to Rio Verde, Ariz. a year ago and saw the
first day of the Rio Verde Invitational postponed by snow. The tournament was
shortened to 36 holes.
This time rain was the culprit, washing out Saturday’s
scheduled second round. This time, though, everybody played two rounds Sunday
to make it a full 54-hole tournament.
Seton Hall also had one of the chief hurdles standing
between it and a Big East Championship, Xavier, in the field at Rio Verde. Last
spring, the Musketeers captured the conference crown with Seton Hall finishing
16 shot behind them in third place.
A couple of weeks ago, Arkansas State rallied past Seton
Hall to capture the team crown in the FAU Winter Warmup in Boca Raton, Fla. The
Red Wolves were at it again in Rio Verde, rolling to a 12-shot victory over
Northern Illinois. It’s the first time Arkansas State has won back-to-back
tourney titles since the 2000-2001 season.
Arkansas State trailed Xavier by two shots after carding an
11-over-par 299 over the 6,242-yard, par-72 White Wing Course at Rio Verde
Country Club in Friday’s opening round. But the Red Wolves, behind 1-2
finishers Grayson Gladden, a senior from Helena, Ala., and Elise Schultz, a
freshman from Pace, Fla., were solid in Sunday’s double-round with a 1-over 289
and a 4-over 292 that left them with a 16-over 880 total.
Northern Illinois matched Arkansas State’s final-round 292
to earn runnerup honors at 28-over 892.
Then there was the tournament within the tournament for the
two Big East teams and Xavier got the best of the Hall, the Musketeers grabbing
third place with a 29-over 903 total. But the Pirates, at No. 73 in the latest Golfstat
rankings the highest-ranked team in the Rio Verde field, were only three shots
behind Xavier in fourth place with a 42-over 906 total.
After its opening-round 297, Xavier struggled to a 305 in
Sunday morning’s second round before closing out with a 301. Seton Hall got off
to slow start with a 306 in Friday’s opening round and caught the Musketeers
after two rounds with an 8-over 296 in Sunday morning’s second round before
closing with a 304.
Akron was another two shots behind Seton Hall in fifth place
in the 18-team field at 44-over 908, the Zips closing with a 9-over 297.
Gladden took control of the individual chase by adding a
2-under 70 Sunday morning to her opening-round 71 and then closed with a 2-over
74 for a 1-under 215 total that was one shot better than Schultz’s even-par 216
score. It was Gladden’s first collegiate tournament victory.
Schultz was solid all weekend, adding a 1-under 71 to her
opening-round 73 before matching par in the final round with a 72.
Olivia Schmidt, a sophomore from Edmond, Okla., gave
Arkansas State a third finisher in the top six as she finished alone in sixth
place at 5-over 221. After opening with a 76, Schmidt contributed a 2-under 70
to the Red Wolves’ second-round surge before closing with a 3-over 75.
Maria Jose Atristain Vega, a junior from Mexico, closed with
a solid 1-under 71 to join the group tied for 28th place at 228.
Rounding out the Arkansas State lineup was Madison Smith, a sophomore from
Moore, Okla. whose final-round 77 was her best round of the weekend and left
her among the group tied for 68th place at 238.
Akron’s Jacinta Pikunas, a redshirt sophomore from
Youngstown, Ohio, finished third in the team standings at 2-over 218, two shots
behind Arkansas State’s Schultz. Pikunas was at even-par 144 after carding a
1-under 71 in Sunday morning’s second round before finishing up with a 2-over
74.
Northern Illinois’ Jasmine Ly, a freshman from Canada,
finished alone in fourth place a shot behind Pikunas at 3-over 219. Ly added a
pair of even-par 72s to her opening-round 75. Boise State’s Lexi Perry, a
junior from El Dorado Hills, Calif., was another shot behind Ly in sixth place
at 5-over 221 after closing with the low round of the tournament, a 3-under 69.
Ly’s Northern Illinois teammate, Ahra Ko, a sophomore from
Suwanee, Ga., and Jasmine Chee, a senior from Hong Kong for tournament host
Western Michigan, finished in a tie for seventh place, a shot behind Arkansas
State’s Schmidt at 6-over 222.
Ko was solid in Sunday’s double-round, matching par with a
72 in the morning and closing with a 1-over 73. Chee opened strong, matching
par in Friday’s opening round with a 72 and adding rounds of 74 and 76 in
Sunday’s double-round.
Leading the way for Seton Hall was Lizzie Win, a senior from
Sylvania, Ohio who landed among the large group tied for ninth place at 7-over
223. Win was just a shot out of the individual lead after firing a pair of
1-under 71s in the first two rounds before struggling to a final-round 81.
Still, there was a lot of good golf from a player who has been a stalwart for
the Pirates. It was Win’s 16th career top-10 finish, one shy of the
program record.
Junior Mia Kness, the 2016 PIAA Class AAA champion as a
senior at Peters Township, struggled in Friday’s opening round with a 79, but
matched par with a 72 in Sunday morning’s second round before closing with a 75
that left her among the group tied for 22nd place at 10-over 226.
Senior Sammie Staudt, a four-time PIAA Class AAA qualifier
at Coatesville, closed with a 2-over 74 to land in the group tied for 38th
place at 231. Carolina Ronchel Salas, a senior from Spain, was a shot behind
Staudt in the group tied for 42nd place at 232. Ronchel Salas posted
a solid 2-over 74 in Sunday morning’s second round, but struggled to an 80 in
the final round in the afternoon.
Senior Maddie Sager, the 2015 PIAA Class AAA runnerup as a
senior at Owen J. Roberts, couldn’t solve the White Wing Course in the first
two rounds, adding an 80 Sunday morning to her opening-round 82. But she
finished up strong with a 3-over 75 to land among the group tied for 61st
place at 237.
Sarah Fouratt, a sophomore from Santa Maria, Calif.,
competed as an individual at Rio Verde and had the best round by a Seton Hall
player in Sunday afternoon’s final round, a 1-over 73 that left her in a tie
for 26th place at 11-over 227.
One of the highlights of Seton Hall’s fall campaign was the
Nittany Lion Invitational at which Sager and Fouratt were two of the three
individual co-champions, their first college tournament victories. Fouratt
might have found a little of that form this week in the desert.
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