Henkel helps Delaware open spring campaign by finishing in a tie for sixth in Reynolds Lake Oconee Invitational

    A young Delaware team earned a third-place finish in last spring’s Colonial Athletic Association Championship at the Grandover Resort’s East Course in Greensboro, N.C.

   The Blue Hens, No. 116 in the latest Golfstat rankings, began this spring’s journey toward the CAA Championship with a solid tie for sixth place in the Reynolds Lake Oconee Invitational, which wrapped up Sunday at The Golf Course at Great Waters at Reynolds Lake Oconee in Eatonton, Ga.

   Behind a solid performance from Lilia Henkel, a freshman from Grand Rapids, Mich. who finished in a tie for fifth place in the individual standings, Delaware actually grabbed the lead following an opening round of  7-over 295 Friday. Overall, the scores were pretty high for the opening round, usually a sign of some tough conditions, either wind or cold or both, and a tough golf course.

   Delaware backed off with a pair of 20-over 308s Saturday and Sunday to end up with a 47-over 911 total over the 6,001-yard, par-72 Great Waters layout, a Jack Nicklaus design.

   East Tennessee State, out of the Southern Conference, trailed Delaware by two after an opening round of 9-over 297. The Buccaneers were still in second place following a 12-over 300 in Saturday’s second round before posting the best team round of the weekend, a 2-over 290, in Sunday’s final round for a 23-over 887 total that left them 11 shots clear of runnerup Mercer, the host team and a SoCon rival of East Tennessee State.

   East Tennessee State, ranked 42^nd, was led by two of the three players who shared medalist honors. Belgian Sophie Bert and Hollie Muse, a senior from England, each carded a 2-under 70 in Sunday’s final round to share the top spot on the leaderboard with North Florida’s Mandy Herrick, a graduate student from Gainesville, Fla., each landing on 1-over 217.

   After opening with a 75, Bert matched par in the second round with a 72. Muse added a 74 in Saturday’s second round to her opening-round 73.

   East Tennessee State earned a bid to the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional last spring, but never got a chance to tee it up when rain washed out the entire tournament and the top six seeds advanced to the NCAA Championship at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Ariz.

   No. 88 Mercer, which finished third in last spring’s SoCon Championship and earned an at-large berth in the Louisville Regional, struggled in the opening round with a 311, but battled back with a 7-over 295 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 4-over 292 for a 34-over 898 total that gave the Bears a second-place finish. The trip to regionals last spring was the first in program history for Mercer.

   Herrick and No. 60 North Florida, the ASUN runnerup last spring, battled back from an opening-round 301 with a 6-over 294 that left the Ospreys atop the leaderboard, two shots ahead of East Tennessee State. North Florida struggled to a final-round 304 to end up third place, a shot behind Mercer with a 35-over 899 total. North Florida was also awarded a spot in the Louisville Regional last spring.

   Herrick matched the low round of the weekend with her opening round of 3-under 69 and was just a shot out of the lead in the individual standings after adding a 3-over 75 in Saturday’s second round. Herrick finished up with a 1-over 73 to get her piece of first place.

   It was seven shots back to No. 135 Rutgers, a Big Ten representative, in fourth place with a 42-over 906 total. After opening with a 307, the Red Knights added a 304 in Saturday’s second round before finishing up with their best round of the weekend, a 7-over 295.

   No. 98 Tulane, out of the American Athletic Conference, was four shots behind Rutgers in fifth place with a 6-over 910 total. The Green Wave got off to a solid start with a 10-over 298, but struggled in Saturday’s second round with a 313 before closing with an 11-over 299.

   Delaware shared sixth place with Tulane’s AAC rival, East Carolina, a shot behind the Green Wave at 911. The Pirates, ranked 118^th, added a 302 to their opening-round 306 before finishing up with a 303.

   Backing up Bert and Muse for East Tennessee State was Sera Hasegawa, a freshman from Japan who closed with a solid 1-over 73 to finish among the group tied for 18^th place with a 9-over 225 total. Hasegawa had opened with a 2-over 74 before adding a 78 in Saturday’s second round.

   Alex Crafton, a freshman from Lake Mary, Fla., added a 76 to her opening-round 79 and closed with a 77 to finish in the group tied for 41^st place with a 232 total for the Bucs. Ellie Darnell, a senior from England, rounded out the East Tennessee State lineup as she finished among the group tied for 56^th place with a 230 total. After opening with a 3-over 75, Darnell struggled to an 82 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 79.

   Georgia’s Caroline Craig, a junior from Sautee Nancoochee, Ga., teed it up as an individual and finished alone in fourth place, a shot behind the top three with a 2-over 218 total.

   Delaware’s Henkel sandwiched a 77 in Saturday’s second round with a pair of even-par 72s to share fifth place with Georgia Southern’s Kaysie Harrelson, a senior from Tifton, Ga., at 5-over 221.

   Harrelson, also competing as an individual, held the lead in the individual chase after adding a 2-under 70 in Saturday’s second round to her opening-round 73. Harrelson finished up with a 78 to fall back into the tie for fifth place with Henkel at 5-over.

   A couple of Rutgers players, Leigha Devine, a junior from Windsor, Colo. and Rikke Nordvik, a sophomore from Norway, headed a group of seven players who finished in a tie for seventh place at 6-over 222.

   Devine struggled to an opening-round 78 and added a 75 in Saturday’s second round before matching the low round of the weekend with a 3-under 69 in the final round. Nordvik also struggled in the opening round with a 79, but matched par in Saturday’s second round and closed with a solid 1-under 71.

   Chattanooga also had two players in the logjam at 6-over, Dorota Zalewska, a junior from Poland, and Esme Hamilton, a junior from England. Zalewska opened with a solid 1-over 73, fell back with a 77 in Saturday’s second round and matched par in the final round with a 72. Hamilton also got off to a nice start with a 1-under 71 before adding a 75 in Saturday’s second round and closing with a 76.

   Christin Eisenbeiss, a sophomore from Germany, gave North Florida a second finisher among the top 10 as she joined the group at 222. After opening with a 78, Eisenbeiss added a 74 in Saturday’s second place before finishing strong with a 2-under 70.

   Eisenbeiss finished in a tie for fourth place in the Louisville Regional last spring and became the first player in program history at North Florida to tee it up in the NCAA Championship as she earned an individual berth.

   Rounding out the large group tied for seventh place were Mercer’s Hailey Katona, a sophomore from Canada, and Wisconsin’s Vanessa Ho, a freshman from San Diego. Katona matched the low round of the weekend in Sunday’s final round with a 3-under 69. She had opened with a 79 and added a 74 in Saturday’s second round. After opening with a 78, Ho matched par in each of the last two rounds with a pair of 72s.

   Backing up Henkel for Delaware was Anna Kittelson, a senior from Boise, Idaho who finished alone in 28^th place with a 228 total. Kittleson contributed a 2-under 70 to the Blue Hens’ strong start in the opening round before struggling to a pair of 79s in the final two rounds.

   Oihana Etxezarreta, a sophomore from Spain, added a 78 to her opening-round 76 and closed with a 77 to finish among the group tied for 36^th place at 231. Etxezarreta was Delaware’s top finisher in last spring’s CAA Championship at the Grandover Resort as she ended up in ninth place.

   Sophomore Christina Carroll, a Bear, Del. resident and a William Penn High product, bounced back from a 78 in the opening round with a solid 2-over 74 in Saturday’s second round before struggling to a final-round 80 that left her in the group tied for 41^st place at 232. Carroll, a product of the Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour, capped a solid freshman season last spring by finishing in a tie for 11^th place in the CAA Championship.

   Rounding out the Delaware lineup was Alisa Khokhlova, a freshman from Russia who finished in 70^th place with a 243 total. After opening with a 77, Khokhlova struggled to a pair of 83s in the final two rounds.

   Lexi Dart, a junior from England, competed as an individual and joined her teammate Carroll in the group tied for 41^st place at 232. After opening with a 78, Dart struggled with an 83 in Saturday’s second round before rebounding nicely in the final round with a 1-under 71.

   An interesting name popped up in the group tied for 36^th place at 231 competing as an individual for Georgia Southern in graduate student Mia Kness, the 2016 PIAA Class AAA champion as a senior at Peters Township who was a solid performer for four years at Seton Hall.

   Looks like Kness decided to take the extra year of eligibility offered by the NCAA to make up for the spring of 2020 lost to the coronavirus pandemic at Georgia Southern. After adding a 77 to her opening-round 76, Kness closed with a 78.

   Kness, in her final appearance for Seton Hall, finished in a tie for 11^th place in last spring’s Big East Championship at The Club at Gateway in Naples, Fla.