KIRKWOOD, Mo. – The Illinois State Redbirds used a tournament-low round of 295 in the second round to turn a five-stroke first-round deficit into a seven-stroke lead heading into the final round of the 2022 MVC Championships.
The Redbirds' two-round total of 604 is seven strokes ahead of second place Missouri State's 611. Drake climbed into the top three with a two-round total of 625 with Indiana State (631), Southern Illinois (631), Bradley (633), Evansville (638), Northern Iowa (639), Loyola (640), and Valparaiso (678) rounding out the 10 schools in the field.
ISU will tee off tomorrow morning at 9:50 a.m. on the first hole, alongside Missouri State and Drake.
Individually, Redbird graduate transfer Kehler Koss holds the lead heading into the final round with a two-round 148, while Ali Schrock is tied for second with a 149. Junior Emma Rouger is tied for fifth with a 151 for the third of a high-standing trio from the Redbirds. Avalon Woodward's 36-hole 159 has her tied for 20th as the Redbirds have utilized two different golfers in the fifth spot.
Koss opened her day with a par before a double bogey on the second hole pushed her to two strokes over par. She followed with four consecutive pars before hitting a hot patch with three birdies in a four-hole stretch, going from two strokes over par to one stroke under par in between the turn between the front and back nine. A bogey on the 11th hole pushed her back to even par, as she closed her round with seven consecutive pars to close the round with an even-par 71, the lowest round in the field through 36 holes.
Schrock and Koss had identical rounds through the first eight holes, including a birdie on the par-three seventh hole; however, Schrock sandwiched the turn within a five consecutive par stretch. A bogey on the par-four 13th hole was answered with a birdie on the par-three 16th hole, as she played the back nine at even par, ending the second round with a one-over 72.
Rouger opened her day with a bogey, before dropping back to even par two holes later with a birdie on the par-five third hole. After a second par she had a three-hole stretch with two bogeys that were answered with a birdie on the seventh hole. Two pars sent her into the turn one shot over par for the front nine, and her back nine started with a bogey and a birdie to keep her at one shot over par. After a pair of pars she picked up a bogey – her final non-par score of the round, as she finished with a two-over 73.
Kira Wolf, an alternate that was inserted into the lineup for the second round had jitters to start her round, as she opened with three consecutive bogeys, before rebounding with a birdie on the par-four fourth hole. Another birdie on the par-four 13th hole gave her the two-under-par holes in the round, while adding eight pars on the day.
Woodward had a birdie on the fourth hole, and had seven pars en route to an 11-over-par 82 for 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.