ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Paced by its freshmen class of Faith Garcia (Westport, Conn./Staples), Erin DiDonato (Hammonton, N.J./Hammonton), and Sarah Kokotajlo (Ewing, N.J./Ewing) the Monmouth University women's golf team finished 10th at Navy's Chesapeake Bay Invitational held at the par-72, 6,085-yard Naval Academy Golf Club. Garcia landed in the top-20 as the Blue and White scored 983 over the 54-hole tournament in its first event of the season.
“I think it was a great tournament for us to start our season at,” commented second-year head coach Susan DeKalb. “Navy was a great venue for us and we are looking forward to building off this weekend and competing at FDU next week.”
Garcia fired 77 in her first collegiate round before carding rounds of 81 and 80 to earn a share of 17th overall with total score of 238. DiDonato registered the lowest round for the Hawks in her first 18-holes with 75 before shooting 85 and 81 to finish three shots behind Garcia with a share of 27th. Kokotajlo opened with back-to-back rounds of 85 before taking four shots off her final round to earn 251, while senior Ashley Navin (Ware, Mass./Quabbin Regional) trailed two strokes behind after her weekend card of 85-84-84. Junior Jessica Kavanagh (Point Pleasant, N.J./Point Pleasant Boro) rounded out the Hawks' scoring with a 268 (86-93-89). Playing as an individual, junior Rebecca Gaona (Howell, N.J./Howell) notched a 267 (93-86-88) over the two-day event.
Towson edged Penn in a sudden-death team playoff to earn the tournament crown with 922, which stand as new course record for a women's event. Dartmouth landed in third with 941, eight strokes in front of Lehigh in fourth. Sacred Heart landed in fifth with 954, while Richmond and St. Francis (Pa.) earned sixth and seventh with scores of 961 and 968, respectfully. Navy trailed the Red Flash by five strokes and completed the event nine shots in front of Wagner. Delaware State finished deadlocked with the Hawks as the two squads finished a stroke ahead of Hofstra. Quinnipiac (996), Randolph-Macon (1047) and St. Francis Brooklyn (1071) rounded-out the 15-team field.
Monmouth returns to the links on Tuesday, September 30th at 1:30 p.m. for a quad match against Fairleigh Dickinson, Wagner and St. Francis Brooklyn at High Mountain Golf Club in Franklin Lakes, N.J.
-@MU_wgolf-
