LEXINGTON, KY - Middle Tennessee shot a 312 in its opening round of the rainy Bettie Lou Evans Fall Invite on Friday to stand in a tie for 11th place. The 54-hole tournament is being held at the par 72 University Club of Kentucky.
Ninth ranked Florida State grabbed the first round lead of the 15-team field by shooting a 298 and is three shots better than second place Coastal Carolina and UCF who both shot 301. Texas State is fourth and Chattanooga is fifth to round out the top five.
Sophomore Steph Gough paced the Blue Raiders with a 2-over par 74 in what was a roller coaster of a day. Gough, who is tied for fifth overall, turned in a team-best five birdies but also managed seven bogeys. Gough went 3-under par from hole seven to 15 and had a birdie on her last hole of the day for her 74.
"I am proud of the way Steph played in rainy conditions," said Head Coach Chris Adams. "She was strong during one stretch of her round and I hope she can build on this effort."
Freshman Olivia Love is tied for 28th after carding a 77 that included one birdie in her first collegiate tournament. Fellow freshman Ashley Haggard had a 79 to tie for 48th.
Sophomore Karisa Akin fired an 82 to tie for 63rd, while freshman Stephanie Smith recorded an 86 to tie for 73rd.
"We are a very young team and this was their first tournament so I am pleased with the way they handled things today," said Adams. "They know we have to remain tough as more rain is expected tomorrow."
The Blue Raiders will play the second round of the three-round event on Saturday.
TEAM SCORES
1 Florida State Univ. +10 F +10 298 298
T2 UCF +13 F +13 301 301
T2 Coastal Carolina +13 F +13 301 301
4 Texas State +14 F +14 302 302
5 Chattanooga +15 F +15 303 303
6 Notre Dame, U. of +16 F +16 304 304
7 Kennesaw State +17 F +17 305 305
8 Augusta State +22 F +22 310 310
T9 Fla. International +23 F +23 311 311
T9 Kentucky, U. of (B) +23 F +23 311 311
T11 Middle Tennessee +24 F +24 312 312
T11 Miami, U. of +24 F +24 312 312
T13 Mississippi St. U. +26 F +26 314 314
T13 Princeton University +26 F +26 314 314
15 Kentucky, U. of +30 F +30 318 318
MT Scores
T5 Steph Gough +2 (74)
T28 Olivia Love +5 (77)
T48 Ashley Haggard +7 (79)
T63 Karisa Akin +10 (82)
T73 Stephanie Smith +14 (86)
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