FGCU WGOLF: John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate Day One Recap

Sophomore Natalia Nassar fired an opening-round 73 (+1), while senior Madeline Marck-Sherk sank a hole-in-one on the 16th to highlight first-round action at the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate as the FGCU women's golf team sits in second place with a 301 (+13).

The Eagles sit 10 strokes back of Murray State (291, +3) and are leading a group of seven teams separated by six strokes in second through seventh-place. Meanwhile, Nassar's 73 is tied for her second-best opening-round score of the year. She birdied the first and 13th holes and sits in a tie for fifth individually.

"We put up a decent round," FGCU head coach Sarah Trew said. "The conditions were pretty tough with the cold and the wind. We managed to battle through, but left some shots out there on a couple easy holes and the par-5's. I believe we will be able to clean those up before the next round and put up a good score."

In addition to Nassar, FGCU received another solid round from freshman Laura Edmonds, who registered a team-high three birdies and finished with a 74 (+2) to give the Eagles a pair of golfers in the top 10. It was the 12th non match-play round of shooting 74 or lower for Edmonds to open her collegiate career.

Marck-Sherk, meanwhile, sank a hole-in-one on the par-3 16th hole, which was 139 playing 155 with the wind.

"She hit a great 6-iron that took a couple hops and disappeared into the hole," Trew said. "It was an exciting moment."

Seenior Kelsy Holbert tied four others for a first-round high of 14 pars. She sits in a tie for 17th, while junior Ailsa Clark finished at 78 (+6) and is tied for 29th.

Team Standings
1. #170 Murray State - 291 (+3)
2. #108 FGCU - 301 (+13)
3. #136 Oral Roberts - 302 (+14)
T-4. #86 South Florida - 303 (+15)
T-4. #154 Albany - 303 (+15)
6. #163 Eastern Washington - 305 (+17)
T-7. #137 Jacksonville State - 307 (+19)
T-7. #139 Jacksonville - 307 (+19)
9. #151 Samford - 311 (+23)
10. #173 Winthrop - 313 (+25)
11. #153 Georgia State - 317 (+29)
12. #171 Appalachian State - 318 (+30)
13. #172 ULM - 321 (+33)
14. #191 McNeese State - 324 (+36)
15. #197 Towson - 327 (+39)
16. #233 Central Michigan - 341 (+53)