9.15.2011

FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University opened its 2011 women's golf campaign at the Dale McNamara Invitational September 12-14 hosted by the University of Tulsa.  The Lancers finished 8th among 15 teams at the 54-hole tournament, posting 302-300-309--911 at The Patriot Golf Club in Owasso, Oklahoma. Seventh-year head coach Ali Wright will take her program to the Yale Women's Intercollegiate this weekend, Sept. 17-18, a 54-hole event at The Course at Yale in New Haven, Connecticut.

A Look Back At The Dale McNamara Invitational
Longwood was led by sophomore Amanda Steinhagen|Oak Hill (Oakton) with her rounds of 77-72-75--224 at the 6,626-yard, par 72 layout that tied for 19th in the field of 75.  Steinhagen was followed closely by fifth-year senior Kameron Carter|Bassett (Bassett) (73-75-78--226, t-26th), along with juniors Ariel Witmer|North Lima, Ohio (South Range) (72-79-78--229, t-35th) and Ha Lee|Hagerstown, Md. (Smithsburg) (82-74-78--234, 50th), and sophomore Hannah Pierce|King George (King George) (80-81-80--241, t-62nd).  Carter was playing in only her second collegiate tournament in two years after seeing action in just one event last year due to a back injury.  Oklahoma State University won the event with its 868 (294-299-275), while Arizona State's Giulia Molinaro took individual medalist honors with her six-under par 67-69-74--210.

Head Coach Ali Wright
“Opening up our season at the competitive Tulsa Invitational was a great learning experience for our program.  We were able to be competitive on a challenging golf course against strong women's golf programs.  We played many good holes of golf throughout the event and had an opportunity going into the final round to challenge several teams in the top half of the field.

“We are looking forward to competing at the Yale Invitational this weekend on a golf course we are familiar with.  The Course at Yale sets up well for our team's strengths, and we are looking forward to shooting low scores.”

A Look At The Yale Women's Intercollegiate
The two-day, 54-hole tournament will include 36 holes on Saturday and 18 holes on Sunday.  The Course at Yale is an approximate 6,000-yard, par 72 layout, and has been voted the #1 College Golf Course in America, while ranked #45 among the top-100 Classical Golf Courses in the country.  The Lancers will take the same lineup to Yale that competed in Oklahoma.

Summer Successes
Amanda Steinhagen won the 86th Virginia State Golf Association (VSGA) Women's Amateur Championship July 11-15 at the Belle Haven Country Club in Alexandria.  She birdied the opening hole of the championship match to lead from the start while defeating Ju Hee Bae of Chantilly 5 and 4 in the final, taking a 4 up advantage after just seven holes en route to her second consecutive VSGA Women's Am title.  Steinhagen had qualified for match play with her 36-hole score of 75-74--149 in stroke play qualifying earlier in the week.  Steinhagen and Hannah Pierce finished third and fifth, respectively, at the 34th Virginia Women's Stroke Play Championship June 14-16 at the Willow Oaks Country Club in Richmond.  Steinhagen finished at 79-79-73--231, while Pierce posted 76-75-84--235.

National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) Academic Awards
Graduate Brooke Mallory along with Hannah Pierce and Amanda Steinhagen were named to the 2010-11 All-American Scholar Team by the NGCA. The trio was among the 566 collegiate women's golfers nationwide to achieve this prestigious academic honor with a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.50. Mallory earned the distinction for the fourth consecutive year, while Pierce and Steinhagen were recognized for the first time.

Perfect NCAA Academic Progress Rate
Longwood posted a perfect score of 1,000 in the spring 2011 release of the multi-year NCAA Division I APR. It marked the fourth-straight year that women's golf has been perfect in posting a multi-year APR score within the top-10 percent of all Division I women's golf teams.

Up Next
Longwood will participate in the Penn State Invitational, a 54-hole tournament at the Penn State Blue Course Sept. 30-October 2 in State College, Pennsylvania.