HOT SPRINGS VILLAGE, Ark. – Despite an unlucky finish to her last hole, Illinois State graduate transfer Kehler Koss carded a final-round 71 – and nearly finished with a round in the 60's – as the Redbirds placed fifth at the 2021 Little Rock Golf Classic.
ISU rebounded from its forgettable opening round to close out the tournament with a final-round 296, giving the team a score of 894 over the three rounds. The 296 is the team's seventh sub-300 team score this season – the most in a single-season in program history – and the 894 is the team's third round under 900 this season, as there are now eight total sub-900 rounds in program history.
Central Arkansas was steady throughout the three days and won the event with an 860 (-4). ULM took second with an 873, while host Little Rock (881), and Georgia State (884) rounded out the four schools in front of the Redbirds. Missouri State (899), Bradley (900), UT Arlington (902), Houston Baptist (903), Wichita State (906), and Stephen F. Austin (928) closed out the 11 schools in the field for the event.
Koss and Maria Toledo Bailey each shared in the top individual tournament finish for the Redbirds, as the pair tied for 20th with a six-over 222, while Vinisha Gunaseelan placed in a tie for 28th with a 226. Behind an even-par final round, sophomore Kira Wolf tied for 36th with a 228, while Ali Schrock carded a three-round 236, good for a tie of 52nd place.
The event closes the door on the fall season for the Redbirds, as ISU is next in a tournament on February 7 and 8 when the team travels to Lakewood Ranch, Florida, to compete in the Mid-American Match Play Challenge, hosted by Bowling Green.
Opening play on the 11th hole in the shotgun-start event, Koss had two birdies in her first three holes, and was under par for the entirety of her round. She was flirting with the school's single round record of 68 (-4) and was at four under par with five holes to play; however, a bogey with four holes to play. After back-to-back pars, her second shot on her finishing hole hit the flagstick and kicked off of the green and into the bunker, turning a likely tap-in for a school-record-tying birdie into a double-bogey, as she finished her round with a one-under 71 on the day.
Wolf, who also started on the 11th hole, opened her day with a par and then a birdie, and was never over par on the day. She hit a strong stretch towards the middle of her round where she had three birdies and a bogey over a four-hole span – her 6th-9th holes – to drop her to two under par. She closed her round with seven pars and a pair of bogeys to turn in an even-par scorecard – a new season-low for the sophomore.
Ali Schrock had a strong start to her day and was at one stroke over par through her first eight holes; however, over her final nine holes she had a birdie and four pars, closing the day with a four-over 76.
Gunaseelan had a steady round – which started on the par-four 10th hole, as her first nine-hole score of 39 was nearly identical to her closing-nine score of 38, as the sophomore had a birdie and 12 pars en route to her 77. Toledo Bailey opened play with nine consecutive pars, making her turn to the back nine at even par; however, had five over-par scores to four more pars over her back nine, ending the day with a six-over-par 78 on the round.
GoRedbirds.com and the Illinois State Redbirds App: Your sources for Illinois State tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more.
