10.12.2011

FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University tied for 10th at the Lady Pirate Intercollegiate women's golf tournament October 10-11 hosted by East Carolina University at the Greenville Country Club in North Carolina.  The Lancers, coached by seventh-year head coach Ali Wright, posted a 54-hole score of 304-301-302--907 among the 20-team field.  Longwood returns to action at the end of the month, Oct. 28-30, playing in the 54-hole Lady Paladin Invitational hosted by Furman University at the Furman Golf Club in Greenville, South Carolina.

A Look Back At The Lady Pirate Intercollegiate
Junior Ariel Witmer|North Lima, Ohio (South Range) led the Lancers with her rounds of 76-71-73--220 that placed 12th in the field of 104.  Witmer posted a new collegiate-best for 54-holes (220), while followed closely by sophomore Amanda Steinhagen|Oak Hill (Oakton) (75-74-73--222, t-15th), along with fifth-year senior Kameron Carter|Bassett (Bassett) (77-77-78--232, t-52nd), sophomore Hannah Pierce|King George (King George) (76-79-78--233, t-57th), and junior Ha Lee|Hagerstown, Md. (Smithsburg) (81-79-79--239, t-77th).  Steinhagen tied her collegiate-best for 54-holes (222).  Witmer tied for first in eagles (1), tied for second in par 3 scoring (2.83, -2), tied for fourth in par 5 scoring (4.58, -5), and tied for 15th in birdies (9).  Steinhagen tied for first in eagles (1) as well, tied for fourth in pars (38), tied for seventh in par 3 scoring (2.92, -1), and tied for 19th in par 5 scoring (4.83, -2).  Carter tied for 15th in pars (35).

Head Coach Ali Wright
“We had a solid tournament at East Carolina; however, we missed multiple opportunities each round to shoot lower by not taking advantage of some short par fives and also making a couple of mistakes each round.  We were able to bounce back from a few doubles and triples, but our team is capable of scoring much lower if we avoid these big numbers to begin with.  The good news is the teams we lost to by only a few shots at East Carolina will be competing at Furman next week.  We look forward to beating these teams at Furman by more shots than they beat us by at East Carolina so that we can be ahead of them on the year.  Our team would like to finish the fall season at Furman with a win.”

In The Rankings
Longwood is ranked 78th among 252 Division I women's golf teams in this week's Golfstat Rankings.  The Lancers' ranking is based upon their 66.572 winning percentage through four tournaments. UCLA is the top-ranked program this week with its 97.104%.  Longwood was ranked 70th in the Golfweek/Sagarin Rankings prior to ECU with a rating of 75.26.  UCLA enjoyed the top ranking as well with its rating of 70.37.

Oh So Close At The Top | Season Statistics
Through four tournaments and 11 rounds of golf, only one shot separates the top two golfers for Longwood.  Ariel Witmer (814) is averaging 74.00 with the team's low round of 70, while Amanda Steinhagen (815) is averaging 74.09 with a low round of 71.  Kameron Carter (843) follows with her average of 76.64 and a low round of 73, along with Ha Lee (869-79.00, 74) and Hannah Pierce (880-80.00, 74). The Lancers are averaging 302.45 as a team through four events, and while still early, well ahead of the school-record scoring average of 307.50 during 2010-11 that included one tournament win.

In The Record Book
Ariel Witmer posted the third-best 54-hole score in program history with her four-over-par 220 at the Lady Pirate Intercollegiate (10.10-11).  Earlier this fall, she tied for what is now the fourth-best 54-hole score in school history with her five-over-par 221 at the Yale Women's Intercollegiate (9.17-18).  Her two-under round of 70 tied as the program's fifth-best low round.  Witmer's 36-hole score of even-par 70-74--144 tied the seventh-best in program history, which she matched again at the Nittany Lion Invitational (71-73, 9.30-10.1).