Despite a challenging day on the golf course, Illinois State junior Samantha Richdale leads the way for the Redbirds. After two rounds of play at the Mo Morial Invitational the Redbirds sit in 10th place. The Birds shot a 326 in round one and 322 in round two with a total of 648. Richdale leads all competitors after the first two rounds. She carded a 75 in round one and a 73 in round two for a two-round total of 148. Assistant coach Pina Gentile is pleased with Richdale performance. I am very pleased with how Samantha played today, she really stepped it and played great , said Gentile. She adjusted well and played two consistent rounds. Behind Richdale are teammates Ashlie Rose who is tied for 36th with a 161 (79,82), Katie Laehn tied for 48th with a 165 (83,82) and Chelsea Bach who shot a 174 (89,85) tied for 74th. Rounding out the line-up for the Birds was Kalia Fuller who sits in 81st with a total of 186 (92,94). The host Texas A&M is leading the tournament with a total of 618, finishing second is Southern Methodist with a 627 and third is Baylor with a 628. In fourth is Texas Christian with a total of 632, Kent State is in fifth with a 636 and Wisconsin is in sixth with a 642. Following Wisconsin is Texas El-Paso with a 643, Northwestern in eight with a 644 and finishing two strokes ahead of ISU is North Carolina with a total of 646. Genitle feels the Redbirds did not play as well as they could but, is optimistic heading into the final round. We had some difficultly playing today, we didnt put up the scores we needed, added Gentile. We are all eager to finish this tournament strong, so I am confident that the scores will be lower in the final round. The Birds resume action Tuesday morning with an 8:30 a.m. shot gun start. ###
