LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla. – The Illinois State women's golf team split a pair of match-play rounds against Mid-American Conference schools with a 4-0-1 win over Ohio, which was followed by a 3-2 loss to Akron.
In the opening match of the tournament, the Redbirds topped the Ohio Bobcats by a 4-0-1 final score. Becca Black had the quickest round of the day, as the senior went five ahead of her opponent over a seven-hole stretch from the fourth to the 10th hole and won the 12th and 13th to give her a six-hole victory with five holes to play. Morgan Savage fell behind with losses on each of her first two holes; however, responded quickly with seven wins over a 12-hole span to win 5&4.
Emma Sutton never trailed in the opening round, jumping ahead by two holes by the third hole, and led by five holes on the 14th hole, winning 5&4. Paige Seiser held a one-hole lead through the first five holes, but back-to-back ISU wins put the senior ahead by a stroke on the seventh hole. She would not trail again and picked up a win on the 15th and 18th hole to win 2Up. In her match, Emma Rouger never had a margin larger than one hole, and trailing by one stroke heading into the final hole, Rouger took the win to close the match with a tie.
In the afternoon finale the Redbirds got a 2UP win by Becca Black, as she out-scored her opponent by two strokes over the final four holes of the day. Seiser also picked up a win 1UP. Savage (2&1), Sutton (3&2) and Rouger (6&5) all fell in their matches against Akron.
The Redbirds return to action on Tuesday, as the squad will face off against Eastern Michigan starting at 7:25 a.m.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
