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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
SEC Championship
Rebels Sit 12th After Round 1 at SEC Championship
4/21/2017 | Women's Golf
Round 1 Results | Round 2 Pairings | Blog: From The Tee Box
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. - The Ole Miss women's golf team put together a solid opening round at the 2017 SEC Women's Golf Championship, finishing nearly three strokes below its season average.
Ole Miss sits 12th among the loaded field at Greystone Golf & Country Club's Legacy Course. Sophomore Martina Flori led the way at an even-par 72, doing so unconventionally, with six birdies in the final nine holes of Round 1.
"Today was one of those days where we saw a lot of good things," said head coach Kory Henkes. "They finished strong. Several finished with birdies coming down the stretch. Marti had six birdies on the back nine, so you can't get upset with that. It was a solid day. Nobody went really low or really high, but overall it was a solid day for the team."
Flori finished her front nine with a bogey, but she turned it on after the turn. The Montecatini Terme, Italy native birdied her next four holes to climb to 2-under and a tie for second. Unfortunately, her tee shot went awry on the 14th hole, resulting in a seven. However, she added two more birdies in her final three holes to finish inside the top 20.
"I didn't start off very well. I was 2-over after the front nine. I wasn't very confident in my game, but then I made a birdie on hole 10 and it gave me momentum going into the back nine," Flori said. "Besides that 14th hole, I made six birdies on the back nine, which gives me confidence for tomorrow."
The Rebels were all solid to open up SEC Championship play, all playing within a four-stroke range of one another. Behind Flori was senior Maria Toennessen, playing in her fourth and final SEC tournament. The Grimstad, Norway native was steady all day, notching just three bogeys. She birdied No. 15 to end her day at 2-over (74).
Senior Madisen Bentley and freshman Pi-Lillebi Hermansson were just one stroke back of Toennessen. Bentley carded two double-bogeys on the front nine, but she came back with two birdies on the back to turn in a solid 3-over (75). Hermansson was 5-over going into the final two holes of her first SEC appearance, but a 35-foot birdie putt on 17 and another birdie finish on 18 also sent her to the clubhouse at 3-over.
Junior Katy Harris picked up two birdies on the day in Birmingham and finished just one stroke out of the counting five at 4-over (76).
"Each girl had one or two swings that cost them a big number here and there," Henkes said. "If we can go hit some balls on the range and feel confident, we can come back out tomorrow and fix those mistakes that we had today."
Ole Miss will tee off starting at 8:40 a.m. CT, paired with Mississippi State for Round 2.
Standings
T1. Arkansas: 283--283
T1. Texas A&M: 283--283
3. Florida: 284--284
4. South Carolina: 286--286
T5. Georgia: 287--287
T5. Vanderbilt: 287--287
T5. Tennessee: 287--287
8. Kentucky: 291--291
10. LSU: 294--294
T11. Alabama: 295--295
T11. Mississippi State: 295--295
12. Ole Miss: 296--296
13. Auburn: 299--299
14. Missouri: 302--302
Ole Miss Rebels
T19. Martina Flori: 72--72
T36. Maria Toennessen: 74--74
T44. Pi-Lillebi Hermansson: 75--75
T44. Madisen Bentley: 75--75
T52. Katy Harris: 76--76
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.
Players Mentioned
