University of Tennessee Athletics
Monday, October 7
Chicago, IL | Medinah Country Club
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Illini Invitational at Medinah
Whiston and Bardwell Lead Lady Vols at Illini Invitational
October 07, 2019 | Women's Golf
Nicole Whiston and Mikayla Bardwell are just two strokes off the individual lead entering the final round as Tennessee sits tied for sixth
MEDINAH, Ill. – After the opening 36 holes of play of the Illini Invitational at Medinah, the Tennessee women's golf team has two players in contention and inside of the top 10.
In her first eight rounds of her collegiate career, freshman Nicole Whiston has been the top Lady Vol on the leaderboard. After the first two rounds on Monday, she shares that distinction with sophomore Mikayla Bardwell as both players are tied for 10th on the individual leaderboard.
Whiston got her morning off to a fast start with birdies on the second and third holes of round one. By the turn, the San Diego, California native was 3-under-par with four birdies on her scorecard.
She finished the round with a season-best 68 (-4) and had a share of the lead entering the second round.
Whiston enters the final round tomorrow at 3-under-par and just two strokes back of the top spot on the individual leaderboard.
After two rounds under par, Bardwell is tied with Whiston at 3-under for the tournament. The Lewisville, Texas native was one of just nine players in the 84-player field to turn in two rounds under par on Monday.
Right near the turn of the first round, she began to knock in her birdie opportunities. Over the last 11 holes of the round, she was 4-under-par and finished the opening round with a 70 (-2).
Bardwell continued that momentum into the second round of play as she spent nearly the entire round at or below par. She poured in four more birdies in the round and finished with a 71 (-1) to find her place in the top 10.
Tennessee (+2), who is tied for sixth as a team, will tee off the final round tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. ET between holes No. 7 and 10. The Lady Vols will be paired with Ole Miss (+3) and Augusta (+4) who are eighth and ninth, respectively.
Coach's Take
On immediate impact of Nicole Whiston to the team:
"I'm thrilled with her maturity and how well she has played all season. She is a very smart player and a really good putter so, she gets the job done. I would like to see some of the older players challenge her more for the top spot like Mikayla did today. That will make us a much stronger team." – Coach Judi Pavon
On improvements in Mikayla Bardwell's game since the Mercedes-Benz:
"She played well the last round at Mercedes and has carried some confidence forward from that. She has had two great weeks of practice working on wedges and putting that paid off today." -- Coach Judi Pavon
On what will help Tennessee move up the leaderboard tomorrow:
"We need to have four scores of even or better tomorrow. Our No. 3 and No. 4 scores need to be around par if we want to make a move."– Coach Judi Pavon
Day One Scores:
Team
Tennessee Team
Tennessee Individual
In her first eight rounds of her collegiate career, freshman Nicole Whiston has been the top Lady Vol on the leaderboard. After the first two rounds on Monday, she shares that distinction with sophomore Mikayla Bardwell as both players are tied for 10th on the individual leaderboard.
Whiston got her morning off to a fast start with birdies on the second and third holes of round one. By the turn, the San Diego, California native was 3-under-par with four birdies on her scorecard.
She finished the round with a season-best 68 (-4) and had a share of the lead entering the second round.
Whiston enters the final round tomorrow at 3-under-par and just two strokes back of the top spot on the individual leaderboard.
After two rounds under par, Bardwell is tied with Whiston at 3-under for the tournament. The Lewisville, Texas native was one of just nine players in the 84-player field to turn in two rounds under par on Monday.
Right near the turn of the first round, she began to knock in her birdie opportunities. Over the last 11 holes of the round, she was 4-under-par and finished the opening round with a 70 (-2).
Bardwell continued that momentum into the second round of play as she spent nearly the entire round at or below par. She poured in four more birdies in the round and finished with a 71 (-1) to find her place in the top 10.
Tennessee (+2), who is tied for sixth as a team, will tee off the final round tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. ET between holes No. 7 and 10. The Lady Vols will be paired with Ole Miss (+3) and Augusta (+4) who are eighth and ninth, respectively.
Coach's Take
On immediate impact of Nicole Whiston to the team:
"I'm thrilled with her maturity and how well she has played all season. She is a very smart player and a really good putter so, she gets the job done. I would like to see some of the older players challenge her more for the top spot like Mikayla did today. That will make us a much stronger team." – Coach Judi Pavon
On improvements in Mikayla Bardwell's game since the Mercedes-Benz:
"She played well the last round at Mercedes and has carried some confidence forward from that. She has had two great weeks of practice working on wedges and putting that paid off today." -- Coach Judi Pavon
On what will help Tennessee move up the leaderboard tomorrow:
"We need to have four scores of even or better tomorrow. Our No. 3 and No. 4 scores need to be around par if we want to make a move."– Coach Judi Pavon
Day One Scores:
Team
| 1 | Kent State | -9 (567) |
| 2 | Louisville | -6 (570) |
| 3 | Illinois | -2 (574) |
| 4 | Oklahoma | -1 (575) |
| 5 | Maryland | +1 (577) |
| T6 | Tennessee | +2 (578) |
| T6 | Texas Tech | +2 (578) |
| 8 | Ole Miss | +3 (579) |
| 9 | Augusta | +4 (580) |
| 10 | Purdue | +13 (589) |
| 11 | San Jose State | +17 (593) |
| T12 | Indiana | +18 (594) |
| T12 | Wisconsin | +18 (594) |
| 14 | Kennesaw State | +19 (595) |
| 15 | Notre Dame | +25 (601) |
Tennessee Team
| Nicole Whiston | T10 | 141 (-3) |
| Mikayla Bardwell | T10 | 141 (-3) |
| Mariah Smith | T39 | 148 (+4) |
| Micheala Williams | T57 | 151 (+7) |
| Malia Stovall | T63 | 152 (+8) |
Tennessee Individual
| Hadley Walts | T63 | 152 (+8) |
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
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