SILVIS, Ill. – Playing in a deep event where the top five schools are separated by less than 50 ranking spots, the Illinois State women's golf team takes to the course to defend their title at the 2026 Missouri Valley Conference Championship.
Event: MVC Championship
When: April 19-21
Where: TPC Deere Run / Silvis, Ill.
Live Scoring: Clippd
PARTICIPANTS (2025-26 Clippd National Rankings)
Bradley (156), Murray State (192), Drake (194), Belmont (197), Illinois State (203), Evansville (229), Indiana State (230), Southern Illinois (235), UIC (246), Northern Iowa (249), Valparaiso (278)
REDBIRD LINEUP
Elise Fennell, Reagan Kennedy, Alex Sparrow, Dani Grace Schrock, Reagan Braker
LAST TIME OUT
Behind a one-over-par effort from Reagan Kennedy, the Illinois State women's golf team climbed to 12th at the completion of the Boilermaker Spring Classic, the final pre-MVC Championship event for the Redbirds. Leading the way in the final round for the Redbirds was Reagan Kennedy, who carded a 73, pushing her up 19 places in the individual standings into a tie of 26th, as she ended the tournament with a three-round 227. Her four birdies in the final round were her largest total of any of the rounds during the tournament as she had eight total birdies in the tournament. Elise Fennell was ISU's top overall finisher in the event, as her final-round 75 pushed her to a 223 54-hole score, tied for the 16th-best individual score in the tournament field. She had nine birdies in the tournament, including two in the final round, while her par-three scoring average (2.92) was tied for the third-best in the tournament field.
REDBIRD HISTORY AT THE EVENT
The Redbirds have the deepest history of Championships within the MVC, as ISU has won more Championship titles than the rest of the field combined, including winning three of the last four events - and two in a row. Last season ISU set a Championship record with an 874 team score, while the team's 31-stroke margin of victory was the fifth-largest in the history of the event.
ABOUT THE COURSE
TPC Deere Run is a destination for golfers of all levels to experience the challenge of a course that tests PGA TOUR professionals each July as the host of the John Deere Classic. TPC Deere Run's championship course was featured as one of America's 100 Greatest Public Golf Courses by Golf Digest, as well as ranked fifth in the state of Illinois by GolfWeek Magazine. Illinois native and former PGA TOUR professional D.A. Weibring masterfully preserved the natural, rolling landscape along the Rock River to create a championship golf course beautifully framed by oak trees and accented by small ponds and deep ravines. Weibring, the course architect, sums up the TPC Deere Run experience best when he says, "It has all the things I think you'd like to have in a golf course."
