Despite much-improved course scoring conditions in a spring season where good weather has been rare, the women's golf team failed to play consistently. "The course was quite playable and the weather was good for scoring, sunny and not too windy," said Meaghan Sullivan '05. Good conditions could not make up for sub-par play, however, and Amherst had to settle for second place. Mount Holyoke captured the victory, shooting a team cumulative 712. Amherst and Wellesley shot 737 and 746, respectively.
"We were expecting to compete better, but we got off to a rough start on the first day and never were able to come back," said Sullivan.
Generally speaking, playing a nine-hole course provides a distinct scoring advantage, allowing players to familiarize themselves with course layout, club selection, green contours and other subtleties that are harder to grasp over 18 holes. The Amherst women were unable to capitalize on this information and fell short of their goal of emerging victorious.
Senior captain Katie Gravel rebounded impressively from a poor first-round 93, bettering her second round by 10 strokes to shoot a team-best 83. Her recovery on Sunday was the type of performance the women had hoped to display all weekend long.
"We were all pleased to see Gravel make a 10-stroke improvement from the first day to the second, but unfortunately the rest of the team couldn't capitalize," said Sullivan.
Teammate Emily Foran '05 posted scores of 88-89 to finish one stroke behind Gravel. The pair finished fifth and sixth overall to lead the Jeffs. Several strokes behind Foran were Sullivan in ninth with a score of 190, Sarah Godwin '05 (11th, 194) and Melissa Sidman '06 (12th, 206), who were able to hold off third-place finisher Wellesley. Defeating Wellesley provided some redemption for Amherst after the Jeffs suffered a narrow loss to Wellesley over spring break in Kiawah.
On Friday, the women play in the Massachusetts State Championships at The Orchards in nearby South Hadley, Mass., followed by the Northeast Women's Intercollegiate Golf Championship at Hickory Ridge and The Orchards on Saturday and Sunday. "Both venues will allow us to meet up with Mount Holyoke and Wellesley again, along with some Div. I teams," said Sullivan.
The women are familiar with both courses and look to fire impressive rounds on Friday to set the tone for the Northeast Championship. Look for Gravel, Foran and Sullivan to lead the team in what they hope will be an improved performance.
Given the women's relatively disappointing play this past weekend, a strong finish will be necessary in order to qualify for the NCAA tournament. The Jeffs traveled to the national tournament the past two seasons and need to perform well this weekend to make the trip again. The team will regroup with a solid week of practice as they try to lower their scoring averages by focusing on their short games.