NORMAL, Ill. – With two home events – one in the fall and one in the spring – Illinois State head women's golf coach Breanne Hall has announced her program's 2021-22 schedule.
The season opens on September 5-6 when the squad hosts the Redbird Invitational for the 57th time in program history. The event has been held each of the last 11 seasons after the tournament took a five-year hiatus between 2005 and 2009. The Redbirds have won this event – held at Weibring Golf Course – five times since 2002.
Three weeks later the squad travels to Missouri to compete in the Johnie Imes Invitational, hosted at The Club at Old Hawthorne. The Redbirds have had the tournament on the fall schedule for each of the last four seasons, and 2021 will be ISU's 10th appearance at the event, highlighted by a fifth-place appearance of 18 schools in 2009.
On October 9-10 the Redbirds makes the short drive to Peoria, Illinois, to compete for the first time at the Coyote Creek Classic at Coyote Creek Golf Club, hosted by Bradley.
The fall season closes on October 24-26 when the Redbirds compete at the Little Rock Golf Classic – another first-time appearance in a tournament for ISU – as the Trojans host the event at Diamante Country Club in Hot Springs, Arkansas.
The Redbirds open the 2022 spring season at the Mid-American Match Play Challenge, hosted by Bowling Green at Lakewood Ranch Country Club. Last season, due to the pandemic, the event pivoted from its traditional match-play event into a stroke-play tournament, where the Redbirds finished third with a program-low tournament score – 12 strokes over par. ISU also competed in the event during the 2019 and 2020 seasons, with the 'Birds going 2-1-1 in 2019 and 2-2 in 2020.
In a second consecutive tournament in warm weather, Illinois State travels to Rio Verde, Arizona to compete in the Rio Verde Collegiate Invitational, hosted by Western Michigan. This season is the 11th appearance for Illinois State in the event, with the top finish coming in 2008 when the team placed ninth of 18 schools in the field.
The following weekend the team makes the trek to southern Texas, to take part in the UTRGV Women's Invitational, hosted by UTRGV at McAllen Country Club in McAllen, Texas.
After a weekend without competition, the 'Birds travel to Arizona for the second time in the spring to take on the field at the Red Rocks Invitational, hosted in Sedona, Arizona. Last season ISU took eighth of 19 schools in the three-round event, and this season is the fourth consecutive spring season that the event has been on the schedule.
The final three tournaments of the spring season keep ISU in the Midwest, starting on March 28-29 at the Diane Daugherty Invitational. The invitational his hosted by Southern Illinois and held at Bogey Hills Country Club in Saint Charles, Missouri. Last season at the Diane Daugherty Invitational ISU took third of 16 schools, while the 'Birds finished two strokes off the MVC Championship last season, held at Bogey Hills Country Club.
For the first time in program history the Redbirds are hosting two events during a season, as ISU will host the Redbird Spring Invitational at Weibring Golf Club on April 8-9.
The scheduled spring season ends on April 17-19 at the MVC Championship hosted at Greenbriar Hills Country Club in Kirkwood, Missouri. In 32 seasons of having a conference championship, the Redbirds have finished first an MVC-best 11 times, with 19 top-three finishes. Last season the 'Birds had the top tournament score in both the second and third rounds, and nearly overcame a large deficit to close the tournament two strokes out of first place.
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