Michigan
NCAA Championships
Van Dievoet's Even-Par 72 Leads NCAA Finals Field
5/19/2017 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
» Michigan battled rain, strong winds and chilly temperatures to open the NCAA Championships with a 315 team total and is tied for ninth after the first day of play.
» After posting two bogeys in her first four holes, Elodie Van Dievoet played her remaining 14 holes two under to card an even-par 72 and sit tied atop the leaderboard individually after the first round.
» After playing five over during her first nine holes, Emily White battled back, going two over on the back side to post U-M's second-best tally of the first day with a 79.
» Playing in the afternoon wave on day two, Michigan will be paired again with Ohio State and Purdue for the second round, going off the 10th tee at noon CDT.
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Site: Sugar Grove, Illinois
Course: Rich Harvest Farms (par 72, 6,343 yards)
Tournament: NCAA Championships (Day 1 of 4)
U-M Team Standing: Tie-9th Place of 24 Teams (315) after Day 1
Top U-M Individual: Elodie Van Dievoet, tie- 1st, 72 (E)
Next U-M Round: Sat-Wed, May 20-24 -- at NCAA Championships, noon CDT (10th tee)
SUGAR GROVE, Ill. -- With expected rains, winds and chilly temperatures for the opening round of the NCAA Championships, the University of Michigan women's golf team battled the elements and was paced by an even-par 72 from first-round leader and sophomore Elodie Van Dievoet to tally a 315 team total today (Friday, May 17) and position the Wolverines tied for ninth among the 24 teams playing for the national title at Rich Harvest Farms.
"We knew the forecast before we teed off yesterday in our practice round so we just kept talking about how the wind was going to switch," said U-M coach Jan Dowling. "Mentally, being over par, even when the conditions are good is a great score around here. We knew the higher scores were going to happen today, and you just have to be patient, be patient, be patient and keep plugging away."
"It's so cliché, but it's the one shot in front of you is the one shot that matters," added Dowling. "You need to try and limit those mistakes as much as you can. The other fortunate thing about us is that we've had a lot of experience in really tough conditions this spring so I think it helped out."
As chilly morning temperatures greeted the Wolverines and playing partners Ohio State (311) and Purdue (315), the Big Ten trio opened the morning wave of the 2017 championships posting three of the top team tallies.
But it was Van Dievoet who highlighted the Maize and Blue's opening round with her even-par 72, tying her for the top spot on the leaderboard. Opening with bogeys on Nos. 2 and 4, Van Dievoet quickly found herself two over par to start her championship. Striking back with birdies on the par 3 fifth and par 5 seventh hole, she drew even, before a third front-nine bogey had her turn one over. Using her length on the par 5 11th hole, she posted her third birdie of the day before grinding out seven straight pars to finish her day even par and among the NCAA leaders.
"I was able to hit every green on the back nine, which helped a lot," said Van Dievoet "I made some really good putts that didn't go in, but pars today are really good, so I was pretty happy to finish the way I did. With the weather conditions we had today, you just never know what is going to happen. I just stayed focused. Honestly, I really tried to focus on staying dry and not worry about the golf."
"Elodie had a pretty impressive round today," said Dowling. "She had a couple of birdies midway through her round that got her going. Today, even par is three or four under par. When you hit the ball as well as she does, any course works into your game. She was able to do that and adjust and make enough birdies today."
Following Van Dievoet, junior Emily White rebounded to a five-over front nine to close with a two-over second nine to post a 79, putting her in a tie for 44th. Senior Grace Choi found trouble late as she carded an opening 80 and is tied for 56th. In her first NCAA Final, freshman Alisa Snyder carded an 84 (t-102nd), while junior Megan Kim had an 85 (t-110th).
"This golf course presents a tough challenge," said Dowling. "You have to recognize the position you're in when you do get in trouble, which is likely out here and find a way to give yourself a chance to make par but be okay with a bogey. If you do that out here and your short game is sharp then it's possible."
With average individual scores for the first round finishing at 80.77, the weather saw less than normal scoring across the board. Northwestern took the first-day lead with a 301. The Wildcats hold a two-shot lead over Kent State's 303. Positions between third through 15th are separated by just eight shots.
The Wolverines will be part of the second wave tomorrow (Saturday, May 20) and will again be paired with Ohio State and Purdue, however, all three Big Ten schools will start off the 10th tee beginning at noon CDT. With 36 holes remaining, the Maize and Blue is looking to crack the top 15 and advance to Monday's (May 22) final round of stroke play.
Team Standings (After Day 1 of 4)
1. Northwestern 301
2. Kent State 303
3. Ohio State 311
Arizona State 311
Stanford 311
Baylor 311
7. South Carolina 313
8. North Carolina 314
9. MICHIGAN 315
USC 315
Purdue 315
12. Miami 316
13. Texas 317
Michigan State 317
15. California 319
16. Florida 320
17. Clemson 321
18. Furman 323
19. Duke 324
20. Florida State 325
21. Alabama 328
22. Pepperdine 330
23. Oregon 333
24. Texas Tech 335
Top Individuals
1. ELODIE VAN DIEVOET, U-M 72 (E)
August Kim. Purdue 72
3. Karoline Stormo, Kent State 73
Janet Mao, Northwestern 73
5. Monica Vaughn, Arizona State 74
Hira Naveed, Pepperdine 74
Katja Pogacar, Ohio State 74
Jennifer Kupcho, Wake Forest 74*
9. Ana Pelaez, South Carolina 75
Hannah Kim, Northwestern 75
Michaela Finn, Kent State 75
Stephanie Lau, Northwestern 75
Other Michigan Individuals
T44. Emily White 79 T56. Grace Choi 80 T102. Alisa Snyder 84 T110. Megan Kim 85 * playing as individual
Communications Contact: Tom Wywrot
Players Mentioned
