FGCU WGOLF: John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate Day Three Recap

The FGCU women's golf team registered its fourth-straight top-2 finish with a final round 307 (+19) at the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate at Eagle's Landing Country Club on Tuesday.

"We managed to come away with another second-place finish but, overall, we definitely didn't play our best this event," FGCU head coach Sarah Trew said. "Our short games and putting was not up to par and it cost us far too many shots. We have a quick turnaround and are back in action in a week so we will put in some hours the next couple of days to ensure we are ready."

The Eagles shot a 54-hole total of 912 (+48) to tie Murray State for second. South Florida (890, +26) won the event. Freshaman Laura Edmonds shot a final-round 74 (+2) to tie for seventh and record her third straight and fourth overall top-10 finish of her freshman year.

Senior Madeline Marck-Sherk led the Green and Blue in the final round with an even-par 72. She finished with a 226 (+10), which was just one stroke shy of matching Edmonds. In doing so, she produced a season-best finish with a 10th-place tie.

Senior Kelsy Holbert and sophomoreNatalia Nassar shot a 232 and 235, respectively, to finish in ties for 28th and 32nd. Junior Ailsa Clark finished third on the team on Tuesday with a 79 (+7) to check in tied for 44th.

This was FGCU's best placement among three top-5 finishes in five appearances at the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate.

2019 - 2nd of 16
2018 - 10th of 17
2017 - 5th of 15
2016 - 4th of 15
2015 - 10th of 15

Team Standings
1. #86 South Florida - 303-293-294---890 (+26)
T-2. #108 FGCU - 301-304-307---912 (+48)
T-2. #170 Murray State - 291-305-316---912 (+48)
4. #154 Albany - 303-303-307---913 (+49)
5. #136 Oral Roberts - 302-301-312---915 (+51)
6. #137 Jacksonville State - 307-301-308---916 (+52)
7. #139 Jacksonville - 307-304-309---920 (+56)
8. #151 Samford - 311-315-301---927 (+63)
9. #171 Appalachian State - 318-310-303---931 (+67)
T-10. #153 Georgia State - 317-308-309---934 (+70)
T-10. #163 Eastern Washington - 305-316-313---934 (+70)
12. #173 Winthrop - 313-307-324---944 (+80)
13. #172 ULM - 321-316-309---946 (+82)
14. #197 Towson - 324-328-302---950 (+86)
15. #191 McNeese State - 324-328-332---984 (+120)
16. #233 Central Michigan - 341-323-326---990 (+126)

Individual Standings
T-7. Laura Edmonds - 74-77-74---225 (+9)
T-10. Madeline Marck-Sherk 79-75-72---226 (+10)
T-28. Kelsy Holbert - 76-74-82---232 (+16)
T-32. Natalia Nassar - 73-78-84---235 (+19)
T-44. Ailsa Clark - 78-82-79---239 (+23)

Quotes From Other Coaches:
USF: "This team is special. It was a tremendous effort from top to bottom with the adversity they faced this week," said head coach Erika Brennan. "To come out on top speaks to the buy-in and grit of these amazing girls and I could not be more proud. It's hard to win a college golf tournament, and this one will go down as one I will remember forever."

"Natalia and Jackie battled, unknowingly, all day long and to have two players in the hunt like that is a lot of fun down the stretch. It's a big boost of energy as we set our sights on the postseason and this momentum couldn't have come at a better time. Congrats to Nati on earning medalist honors and a massive thank you to Coach Stevens, who always sets our team up for success and works relentlessly for the betterment of our program. I also want to thank Dr. Lee, who traveled with us this week and was a rock for each of us behind the scenes. The role he plays in regards to sports performance cannot be overstated. It was a fun day out there. This group is special."

"We are proud of what this team has accomplished this week," said assistant coach Dalton Stevens.  We battled a lot of adversity after battling illness the week prior to this event. We had two great rounds after struggling in the first round. Great battle by our team to come from behind and win by a good margin. We got great rounds today in the final round by Natalia, Jackie and Sadie. Jackie posted a phenomenal round of golf today. It's always a great tournament when the team wins and you have the individual medalist. This week was a total team effort and gives us great momentum as we prepare for the conference in two weeks."

Albany: “I’m really proud of this team and their performance throughout this event,” said UAlbany’s head coach Colleen Cashman-McSween. “We really got off to a solid star after Rounds 1 and 2, shooting our best Spring scores to date. Even though we missed out on second place by just one stroke, it is nothing to be upset about."

JU: "The golf course played tough for everyone," said head coach Jennifer Borocz. "We need to have a good couple of weeks to prepare for conference. The team is hungry after this event, so we are excited to see how they will bounce back."

Appalachian State: "We really stressed how important it was to make pars and limit big numbers,"  said head coach Heather Brown.

Eastern Washington: "This wasn't the finish we were looking for," said head coach Brenda Howe. "We dug ourselves a pretty good sized hole in our first four holes and couldn't climb out. Madalyn Ardueser and Alexa Clark played well all week and had great finishes in the individual standings. Next week, we really need to work on our 3-5 positions, and make sure we're staying mentally strong each round. They got rattled early in the last two rounds, and we need to work on how we handle the emotions and make sure to maintain a competitive mindset."

ULM: "The ladies struggled a bit this week with a slow start," ULM Director of Golf Tim Baldwin said. "We played much better today but sort of limped in late. We'll be competing in the Murray State Jan Weaver Invitational later this week, and we hope it's a competitive tune-up for the Sun Belt Championships."

Next Up:
The Green and Blue will be back in action April 8-9 in the Brickyard Collegiate hosted by Mercer in Macon, Ga. to conclude the spring regular season. The ASUN tournament will take place April 21-23.