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The University of Mississippi Athletics
Ole Miss
Clemson Invitational
Strong Start for Women’s Golf Has Them in Second at Clemson Invitational
3/24/2023 | Women's Golf
Freshman Nicole Gal Leads the Charge for the Rebels, Carding Career-Best Round of 70 (-2)
CLEMSON, S.C. – The Ole Miss women's golf team got off to a hot start in their final regular season tournament of 2023 at the Clemson Invitational, as the Rebels finished under par with a 287 (-1) on the day to sit in second place overall.
The team saw cool, calm and collected play to open their tournament throughout the whole lineup, with the Rebels ending day one leading the field in par-3 scoring (-2) and total pars (64), while also tallying 12 birdies to help the squad be one of just two teams to end day one below par. Ole Miss also ranks second in par-4 scoring overall, shooting two-over on those holes on Friday.
"Today was a solid start to our tournament," head coach Kory Henkes said. "We have a few course management errors to clean up before our next round but overall we are in a good position to make a run at it tomorrow."
A fresh face led the way for the Rebels on day one, as first-year Nicole Gal blazed the Reserve at Lake Keowee Golf Course to card a career-low round of 70 (-2), earning a share of sixth heading into Saturday. The Oakville, Ontario, native's five birdies ranks second amongst all golfers in attendance for the opening day, trailing only tournament leader Savannah Grewal of Clemson.
"We had some great golf today from our freshman, Nicole Gal," Henkes said. "It was awesome to see her hard work starting to pay off."
Gal will now have two more rounds to pursue what could be a career weekend for the freshman, as she'll aim to improve upon her current career-best finish of 25th at The Ally where she made her collegiate debut in the fall.
Two other Rebels carded themselves par or better rounds in Friday's opening round in South Carolina, as both Chiara Tamburlini and Elle Johnson closed out day one with rounds of 72 (E) on the day.
The senior duo heads into Saturday tied for 14th, which would stand as a new career-best finish for Johnson since joining the Rebels in the fall. Tamburlini, on the other hand, is aiming to secure what would be her seventh Top 20 finish of the season in eight tournament appearances.
Senior Andrea Lignell sits right on the fringe of the Top 20 through one round of action at Lake Keowee, with her round of 73 (+1) settling her into a tie for 24th. Lignell will be looking to translate a strong start to her tournament to the remainder of her weekend, as the Gothenburg, Sweden, native went two-under over her opening 10 holes of play before ending the day one-over par.
Natacha Host Husted rounded out the day for the Rebels by logging an 80 (+8) to open her weekend, slotting her into a tie for 66th.
Ole Miss will return to action tomorrow at the Reserve at Lake Keowee Golf Course for round two of the Clemson Invitational. The Rebels are slated to tee off for their second round of action beginning at 10 a.m. CT.
For all Ole Miss women's golf latest news and information, follow the Rebels on Twitter at @OleMissWGolf, on Instagram at OleMissWGolf and on Facebook at Ole Miss Women's Golf. General athletic news can also be found at @OleMissSports on Twitter, Ole Miss Sports on Facebook, and OleMissAthletics on Instagram.
| THE REBELS |
T6. Nicole Gal: 70 (-2)
T14. Chiara Tamburlini: 72 (E)
T14. Elle Johnson: 72 (E)
T24. Andrea Lignell: 73 (+1)
T66. Natacha Host Husted: 80 (+8)
| TEAM LEADERBOARD |
1. Clemson: 281 (-7)
2. Ole Miss: 287 (-1)
3. LSU: 288 (E)
4. Virginia Tech: 290 (+2)
5. Kentucky: 291 (+3)
6. Vanderbilt: 292 (+4)
7. Maryland: 296 (+8)
8. Oklahoma State: 297 (+9)
T9. Tennessee: 299 (+11)
T9. UNCW: 299 (+11)
11. Kent State: 300 (+12)
12. Illinois: 302 (+14)
13. FAU: 310 (+22)
14. Columbia: 312 (+24)
15. Furman: 316 (+28)
16. Oklahoma: 317 (+29)
Players Mentioned
