Blue Raiders finish 10th at Pinehurst

PINEHURST, N.C. - Ashley Haggard carded a one-under 71, but it wasn't enough as the Middle Tennessee women's golf team recorded a 12-over round of 300 to finish the Pinehurst Challenge in 10th place (out of 16) on Course No. 6 (Par 72, 5,983 yards) at Pinehurst Golf Resort.

"Overall, we just left too many shots out there," head coach Chris Adams said. "Haggard played pretty well for us, but as a team we just let one or two holes keep us from having a good day. We need to avoid the big mistakes."

The Blue Raiders ended the event with a 41-over 905.

Karisa Akin entered the day in a tie for 13th, but shot a seven-over 79 to drop into a tie for 28th at 10-over in the 88-player field.

Ashley Haggard made a move in the opposite direction by recording the only Blue Raider round under par in the tournament, shooting a one-under 71 to tie for 39th at 12-over. Allie Knight also tied for 39th after posting a five-over 77.

Olivia Love had the second-best MT round on the day with a two-over 74, moving up the board into a tie for 48 at 14-over, and Natalie Chrisopulos carded a six-over 78 to finish in a tie for 56th at 17-over.

The Blue Raiders will look to get back on track next week when they hit the road for the annual UALR Women's Golf Classic, a tournament that's treated MT pretty well over the years.

"We'll certainly have our hands full next week, but I'm looking forward to it," Adams said. "There will be a lot of conference schools there, and we'll need to have everyone firing on all cylinders. We're a lot better than what we showed this week."

TEAM SCORES (of 16)
1. NC State - 286-285-294=865 (+1)
2. Maryland - 296-290-296=882 (+18)
3. Old Dominion - 296-293-294=883 (+19)
4. East Carolina - 289-297-301=887 (+23)
5. UNCW - 295-298-299=892 (+28)
5. Penn State - 305-288-299=892 (+28)
7. UNCG - 299-297-300=896 (+32)
8. James Madison - 311-295-297=903 (+39)
9. Samford - 299-298-307=904 (+40)
10. Middle Tennessee - 305-300-300=905 (+41)

MT SCORES (of 88)
T28. Karisa Akin - 75-72-79=226 (+10)
T39. Ashley Haggard - 80-77-71=228 (+12)
T39. Allie Knight - 75-76-77=228 (+12)
T48. Olivia Love - 81-75-74=230 (+14)
T56. Natalie Chrisopulos - 75-80-78=233 (+17)

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