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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
SEC Championship
Ole Miss Boasts Top-10 Finish at SEC Championship
4/17/2016 | Women's Golf
Final Results | BLOG: From The Tee Box
HOOVER, Ala. - Year one of the Kory Henkes era at Ole Miss has come to a close with the Ole Miss women's golf team finishing in seventh place at the 2016 SEC Women's Golf Championship at the Greystone Legacy Course in Hoover, Alabama.
Behind an even par round from junior Maria Toennessen (Grimstad, Norway) the Rebels logged their best finish in the SEC Championship since 2010 when they finished eighth with a three-round score of 876.
"This was unbelievable this week," head coach Kory Henkes said. "If you would have told me at the beginning of the week to take a 900, I would have called it a day and said absolutely. These girls played great. Today we shot a 293 and had a lot of help from our freshmen who stepped up a lot this week."
Ole Miss posted a three-round total of 894, breaking 900 for the second straight outing as a team. Toennessen dropped a season-high six birdies on her way to a even-par 72 on championship Sunday. Henkes was excited for everyone's results in the final round of the year.
"It was a lot of fun out there today," Toennessen said. "I didn't play well (on Saturday) so I knew I had to step it up today. I made a lot of birdies and it was fun to finish the way I did and the way we did as a team."
"It was a team event for us," Henkes added. "We counted everyone's scores multiple times during the week, and it was a great tournament."
Two seniors, Alison Hovatter (Meridianville, Ala.) and Abby Newton (Katy, Texas), were both donning the Red and Blue for the final time and recorded solid scores on their final day of their college careers.
"I really didn't have my best stuff today, but I hung in there and had a great attitude I felt like," Hovatter said. "I really just enjoyed the walk, and enjoyed each shot. I didn't accomplish everything I wanted to here, but I hope when people look at my career here they see how big our God is."
"I knew today was going to be my last (collegiate) round and my last SEC Championship so I really wanted to finish strong," Newton added. "I'm not really happy with how I played her entirely, but I'm happy with my last two rounds."
Hovatter posted a 1-over par 73 in her final round with two birdies and a near-perfect front nine. Newton carded a 2-over par 74 with three birdies including an even-par front nine.
"Having those two has been huge for us," Henkes said. "They are both great leaders not only on the course but in life in general. They're both great students and work really hard each and every day doing everything we ask them to do."
Hovatter and Newton have helped to lay the groundwork for the turning around of the Ole Miss women's golf program, and their leadership helped move the program forward in year one of the new coaching staff.
"I couldn't be more proud of them," Henkes added. "It was great seeing them finish with low numbers today, and we're happy for them and they're families and everything they've done for our program."
For all Ole Miss women's golf news and information, go to OleMissSports.com, and follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWGolf and Facebook at Ole Miss Women's Golf. Fans can also follow head coach Kory Henkes on Twitter at @KoryThompson1.
Team Standings
1. Alabama: 286-292-281-859
2. Florida: 292-286-286-864
3. Arkansas: 300-294-288-882
4. Texas A&M: 299-291-294-884
5. South Carolina: 298-301-298-888
6. Georgia: 296-296-297-889
7. Ole Miss: 301-300-293-894
8. Tennessee: 297-305-294-896
9. Missouri: 295-303-302-900
10. Vanderbilt: 309-304-292-905
11. LSU: 305-303-303-911
12. Mississippi State: 305-303-306-914
13. Auburn: 304-311-304-919
14. Kentucky: 312-312-297-921
Ole Miss Players
T9. Alison Hovatter: 74-71-73-218
T20. Martina Flori: 73-75-74-222
T37. Maria Toennessen: 74-81-72-227
T58. Abby Newton: 88-74-74-236
68. Madisen Bentley: 80-80-80-240
Players Mentioned
