JONESBORO, Ark. – Behind an opening-round 286 – tied for the 10th-best single-round score in program history – the Illinois State women's golf team is tied for eighth after the opening day of the 54-hole Lady Red Wolves Classic.
Austin Peay is the 36-hole leader with a 571, while Murray State (576), Arkansas State (578), Central Arkansas (583), and Little Rock (584) round out the top five, with Troy (587), West Georgia (593), and Illinois State (594) chasing for a top finish. Morehead State (595), Southern Illinois (596), Samford (596), UAB (605), and Memphis (608) close out the field in the next-to-last event of the fall season for the Redbirds.
Cynthia Lang led the Redbirds on the day with a 36-hole score of 146 and is tied for 17th overall. She had five birdies and 10 pars in her opening-round 71, which is tied for the 19th-best single-round by a freshman in program history. She came back with two birdies and a dozen pars in her second round, finishing with a two-over 74. She is averaging 3.80 on the par-four holes through the first two rounds, which is the second-best par-four scoring average in the field.
Reagan Kennedy and Cora Hirz are tied for 30th, as the pair shot matching rounds of 70 and 77 over the first day. Hirz' opening-round 70 is tied for the seventh-best single-round by a freshman in program history. Her opening round had four birdies and a dozen pars, while her second round saw a birdie and another dozen pars in her five-over par second round. Kennedy had three birdies and 14 pars in the opening round, and after a birdie on her opening hole, was never at or over par over the first 18 holes. She had a birdie and 11 pars in her second round, a five-over 77.
Alex Sparrow's rounds of 75 and 80 came from four birdies and 19 pars, and she is tied for 63rd, while Xuan (Hazel) Gao's rounds of 75 and 85 had two birdies and 23 pars, with her standing in a tie for 77th. Playing as an individual, Claudia Weston had rounds of 83 and 89, with two birdies and 14 pars, and is in 81st with one round remaining.
