Three Lady Vols Inside of Top 15 at the Magnolia Invitational

Sunday, October 13

West Point, MS | Old Waverly Golf Course

All Day

University of Tennessee

Magnolia Invitational

Three Lady Vols Inside of Top 15 at the Magnolia Invitational

October 13, 2019 | Women's Golf

Leaderboard

Freshman Nicole Whiston leads Tennessee and is tied for second at 1-under-par

By: Andy Kovar

WEST POINT, Miss. – After the opening 18 holes of play at the Magnolia Invitational, the Tennessee women's golf team is tied for fourth on the leaderboard.

The Lady Vols have three players inside of the top 15 on the individual leaderboard. After one round, Nicole Whiston is the top player for the Lady Vols for the 10th consecutive round as she sits in contention for the individual title.

Whiston, who played at Old Waverly Golf Club in August as a part of the 119th U.S. Women's Amateur field, is just two strokes off the individual lead and one of just five players to be under par.

Whiston got her day off to a quick start when she carded a birdie on No. 1. She would remain at 1-under at the turn and was as low as 2-under-par for the day.

Senior Micheala Williams and junior Waverly Whiston sit just three strokes back of her and in a tie for 15th at 2-over-par. Williams turned in a team-high four birdies on the day including three on the back nine to help her to an opening round 74.

Waverly Whiston tallied two birdies in her round with both coming on the front nine. They helped her enter the turn at even par as Tennessee was 1-under-par and tied for the lead at that point. Her two bogeys on the back nine brought her back above par to close out the day.

The Lady Vols sit just one stroke off host Mississippi State for third entering the final day of competition while being just six strokes off the lead heading into Monday.

Due to expected weather in the area on Tuesday, Monday has been shifted to a shotgun start with the teams playing the final two rounds on Monday.

Tennessee is scheduled to tee off the final round Monday at 9 a.m. ET between holes No. 5 and 9. The Lady Vols will be paired with Chattanooga (+7) and Kennesaw State (+11) who are tied for fourth and sixth, respectively.

Coach's Take
On shifting format for tomorrow's final day of competition:
"All of our tournaments have had a 36-hole day, but usually the first two rounds are the 36-hole day. It's nice to actually have seen the course and know where we stand and then play the 36-hole day. This course has some challenging holes so; they will need to really keep their focus the whole way through." – Coach Judi Pavon

On the play of Waverly Whiston and Micheala Williams:
"Waverly played well today after missing the last tournament and Micheala did a good job keeping it together even with two doubles on the back nine. We are in good shape heading into tomorrow and everyone is feeling pretty confident about their game." -- Coach Judi Pavon

On Nicole Whiston having recent experience at Old Waverly:
"Nicole gave us a lot of good pointers during the practice round. Her experience on the course definitely helped her today. We are playing it shorter than she did for the Am so, the course does look good to her."– Coach Judi Pavon

Day One Scores:
Team

1	LSU	+1 (289)
2	Auburn	+2 (290)
3	Mississippi State	+6 (294)
T4	Tennessee	+7 (295)
T4	Chattanooga	+7 (295)
6	Kennesaw State	+11 (299)
7	Tulsa	+14 (301)
8	Southern Miss	+21 (309)
9	Iowa	+23 (311)
10	South Florida	+32 (320)
11	Memphis	+33 (321)