BARTONVILLE, Ill. – The Illinois State women's golf team became just the sixth team in program history with two consecutive sub-300 rounds, and they recorded both during the opening day of Bradley's Coyote Creek Classic with rounds of 295 and 297, as the Redbirds stand third heading into the third and final round of competition.
The Redbirds' two-round opening day total of 592 trails only Xavier (578) and Missouri State (582), and stands ahead of Bradley (601), Loyola Chicago (607), Green Bay (607), Cleveland State (615), Drake (622), Western Illinois (630), Valparaiso (641), Western Michigan (642), and Chicago State (655).
Three Redbird teams – the 2020-21, 2009-10, and 2002-03 teams all had stretches with three consecutive rounds under 300, while 2009-10 and 2004-05 each had two consecutive such rounds. So far this season over two-plus tournaments and eight rounds ISU has had four rounds under the 300-stroke plateau, which is tied for the third-most in a season in program history behind the 2020-21 squad (six rounds) and the 2009-10 squad (five rounds).
The Redbirds will be paired in the third and final round with tournament leaders Xavier and Missouri State, starting with the 8:30 a.m. tee time.
Vinisha Gunaseelan and Ali Schrock shot matching 145's (+1) on the first day and are tied for fifth in the field of 66 golfers. Kira Wolf's 150 (+6) is tied for 16th, while Kehler Koss and Avalon Woodward both have a two-round score of 154 (+10), tied for 27th. Playing as an individual, Maria Toledo Bailey's 149 (+5) has her tied for 13th with 18 holes to play in the competition.
Starting on the fourth hole on the golf course, Gunaseelan had a rough opening with bogeys on two of her first four holes, before settling in for the remainder of the day. She came back with back-to-back birdies on the ninth and 10th holes, before carding nine pars in her final 11 holes of the day to close the morning round with a two-over 74. On her second round of the day, she came back strong, opening with a birdie on the par-four fourth hole, and had five total birdies on the round, ending the day with a one-under 71, her lowest round as a Redbird.
Schrock had a steady day with her two rounds finishing just one stroke apart and both rounds lowering her previous season scoring average of 73.5. She was never over par over the opening 18 holes, as a birdie on her second hole of the day – on the second hole of the course helped her stay at or under par for the entire round. In all over the opening round she had three birdies and three bogeys, ending the round at even par. On the back nine it took for the third hole to go over par with a bogey; however, she was never more than two strokes over par at any time on the par-72 course, and she closed strong with a birdie on the final hole to close the day with a one-over-par 73.
Wolf had an opening round filled with peaks and valleys, as she started her day by going six strokes over par over the first seven holes of the day, including a bogey on the par-four ninth hole. She came back with a vengeance and had birdies on three over her first four holes on the course's back nine, and with a birdie on her 16th hole of the day, followed by two more pars, she finished the remaining 11 holes at four strokes under par, ending the opening 18 holes with a two-over 74. She added two more birdies on the second round, along with a dozen pars, ending the day's final 18 holes with a four-over 76
Graduate transfer Koss opened her day with a round that included two birdies and a dozen pars, closing the opening 18 holes with a three-over 75. She had two more birdies in her second round – including one on her final hole of the day – to add to eight pars to finish the day with a seven-over 79.
Woodward was steady through the first 13 holes of the day with a dozen pars and a bogey and had 14 total pars on the opening 18 holes to close her first round with a 77. She had a steady start to her second round and made the turn at one over par thanks to a birdie on the par-four seventh hole. Another birdie on the par-five 12th hole dropped her to even par on the round; however, she stumbled at the finish of the day with four over-par scores to end the round with a five-over 77.
Toledo Bailey – who started on the 18th hole, opened with three consecutive pars before a bogey broke the stretch. She had two birdies and three pars over her next five holes to make the turn at one stroke under par. Over her final nine holes she had eight pars and one double bogey to close the day with a one-over 73 – right at her season scoring average. Her second 18 holes weren't as smooth as her opening round, but she did have two birdies and 10 pars over her final round to finish with a four-over 76 heading into the final round.
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