Hund leads College of Charleston to CAA crown; Delaware finishes second

    The first of what, hopefully, is a whole bunch of wrapups of conference championships …

   It was a frustrating runnerup finish for Delaware as the Blue Hens finished 11 shots behind the College of Charleston, No. 60 in the latest Golfstat rankings, in the Colonial Athletic Association Championship, which had an Easter Sunday wrapup at The Reserve Club at St. James Plantation in Southport, N.C.

   The College of Charleston, getting a 1-2 finish from Viktoria Hund, a sophomore from Germany, and Emma Schimpf, a freshman from Daniel Island, S.C., respectively, took command with a solid 3-over 291 in Saturday’s second round and never looked back in claiming the CAA crown for the fourth time since it joined the conference.

   The tournament title gives the Cougars an automatic bid to the NCAA regionals.

   The College of Charleston was the runnerup to James Madison a year ago at the Grandover Resort’s East Course in Greensboro, N.C. James Madison’s players were allowed to compete as individuals at The Reserve Club, but the Dukes were ruled ineligible for the team competition after the school announced last fall that it would be leaving the CAA for the Sun Belt Conference.

   The College of Charleston opened with a 13-over 301 Friday and the Cougars’ second-round 291 in Saturday’s second round gave them a six-shot edge over Delaware going into Sunday’s final round. The College of Charleston closed with a solid 4-over 292 for a 20-over 884 total.

   Delaware struggled a little in Friday’s opening round, posting a 309, but the Blue Hens bounced back with the best team round of the weekend, a 1-over 289, in Saturday’s second round. Delaware then finished up with a 9-over 297 to end up 11 shots behind the College of Charleston in second place with a 31-over 895 total.

   It was the fifth time in the last six playings of the CAA Championship that Delaware finished either first or second.

   North Carolina Wilmington was 14 shots behind Delaware in third place with a 45-over 909 total. The Seahawks shaved 10 shots off their opening-round 306 with an 8-over 296 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 307.

   Elon was four shots behind UNCW in fourth place in the seven-team field as the Phoenix added a 305 in Saturday’s second round to their opening-round 306 before closing with a 302 for a 49-over 913 total.

   Hund was the runnerup a year ago at Grandover, but moved up a spot to capture the CAA’s individual crown this time and lead the College of Charleston to the team title.

   Hund added a 1-under 71 in Saturday’s second round to her opening-round 75 and trailed Delaware sophomore Christina Carroll, a Bear, Del. resident and William Penn product, by two shots going into Sunday’s final round.

   Hund closed with a 2-under 70, making back-to-back birdies at the 17^th and 18^th holes to finish with a flourish, for an even-par total of 216.

   Schimpf was solid all weekend as she matched par in Saturday’s second round with a 72 after opening with a 73 and was only a shot behind Carroll in the individual chase going into Sunday’s final round. Schimpf finished up with another 1-over 73 to take runnerup honors, two shots behind her teammate Hund with a 2-over 218 total.

   Backing up the top two for the College of Charleston were Jodee Tindal, a graduate student from Rock Hill, S.C., and Smith Knaffle, a redshirt sophomore from Murrells Inlet, S.C., both of whom finished among the group tied for 11^th place at 12-over 228.

   Tindal sandwiched a 3-over 75 in Saturday’s second round with a pair of 76s. Knaffle added a 78 in Saturday’s second round to her opening-round 77 before contributing a solid 1-over 73 to the Cougars’ strong finish.

   Rounding out the College of Charleston lineup was Mary Kathryn Talledo, a freshman from Spartanburg, S.C. who finished in the group tied for 26^th place with a 234 total. Talledo struggled in the opening round with an 81, but bounced back by matching par with a counting 72 in Saturday’s second round. Talledo finished up with an 80.

   It was a real bustout weekend for Delaware’s Carroll, who was a regular on Philadelphia Section PGA Junior Tour leaderboards throughout her junior career.

   After opening with a 76, Carroll had the best round of the weekend, a sparkling 4-under 68, in Saturday’s second round that landed her atop the individual standings. Carroll made birdies at the first, fifth, seventh and 10^th holes and had nary a bogey on her scorecard.

   Carroll struggled a little in the final round with a 5-over 77 that left her in third place, three shots behind Schimpf with a 5-over 221 total.

   William & Mary’s Sarah Houle, a senior from Sandy Hook, Conn., was another two shots behind Carroll in fourth place with a 7-over 223 total. Houle added a 2-over 74 in Saturday’s second round to her opening-round 76 before closing with a solid 1-over 73.

   Delaware also got a strong showing from Lexi Dart, a junior from England who finished a shot behind Houle in fifth place with an 8-over 224 total. After opening with a 78, Dart registered a 4-over 76 in Saturday’s second round before finishing as the low Blue Hen in Sunday’s final round with a 2-under 70.

   A pair of UNCW standouts, Mallory Fobes, a junior from East Bend, N.C., and Deborah Spair, a redshirt freshman from Raleigh, N.C., shared sixth place with James Madison’s Amelia Williams, a sophomore from Gainesville, Fla., each landing on 9-over 225.

   Fobes sandwiched a solid 1-under 71 in Saturday’s second round with a pair of 77s. Spair matched Fobes’ 1-under 71 in Saturday’s second round after opening with a 75 before finishing up with a 79.

   It had to be a bittersweet weekend for Williams and the rest of the Dukes as they competed as individuals, but were denied the opportunity to defend their team title. Williams added a 76 in Saturday afternoon’s second round to her opening-round 74 before closing with a 75.

   Lene Sperling, a junior from Germany, gave Delaware a third top-10 finisher as she shared ninth place with Elon’s Svarin Yuehyong, a junior from Thailand, each landing on 10-over 226.

   Sperling matched par in Saturday’s second round with a 72 after opening with a 79 before finishing up with a 3-over 75. Yuenyong sandwiched a 78 in Saturday’s second round with a pair of 2-over 74s.

   Delaware also got a nice performance from Alisa Khokhlova, a freshman from Russia who finished in a tie for 17^th place with a 230 total. After opening with an 81, Khokhlova signed for a solid 2-over 74 in Saturday’s second round before closing with a 75.

   Rounding out the Delaware lineup was Oihana Etxezarreta, a sophomore from Spain who finished in a tie for 26^th place with a 234 total. Etxezarreta opened with a 76 and added a 3-over 75 in Saturday’s second round, but struggled in the final round with an 83.

   Etxezarretta was Delaware’s best player all season and probably put a lot of pressure on herself in the CAA Championship. But if Delaware was a good team at the end of the season, and the Blue Hens’ runnerup finish in the CAA Championship says they were, it was because they were following Etxezaretta’s lead all along.

   Patty Post, the director of golf programs at Delaware, took an all-underclass team to The Reserve Course and there were some solid underclassmen left back in Newark. It looks like the near-term future is bright for Post and her Blue Hens.