Golf Central: IJGA Collegiate Invitational

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee women's golf team goes international this weekend as they compete at the IJGA Collegiate Invitational in Guadalajara, Mexico, marking UT's first spring tournament of the season.

The three day event, hosted by the University of Virginia, fields 14 teams with Tennessee as one of the 12 top-50 teams, according to the latest GolfStat rankings. The Big Orange will be one of five SEC teams competing as Arkansas, LSU, South Carolina and Texas A&M join them in Mexico.

This marks the second time this season, and eighth time in program history, that the Lady Vols have traveled outside the country. They most recently competed at the White Sands Invitational in Nassau, Bahamas, in October.

At the White Sands Invitational, Tennessee placed fourth out of 14 participants and carded an 867 as a team. In the final round, the team was the largest mover in the field as they passed four teams after tying the sixth lowest score in school history of 279 (-9).

Freshman Nicole Whiston was the top finisher, tying for 14th after shooting a 216 (E). Senior Micheala Williams was the next best performer, tying 21st with 218 (+2) and grabbing her second consecutive top-25 finish.

The Lady Vols' Lineup
Micheala Williams
After the fall schedule, Williams played all 15 rounds of golf and averaged 73.40 per round. Her lowest score was at the Magnolia Invitational, carding a 68. At the same tournament, she carded her best 54-hole score with 215 and tied for 16th.

Malia Stovall
Stovall averaged 74.22 strokes during the fall slate after playing in three tournaments. Her best performance was at the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship, with her lowest round at 71 and tying for 25th overall.

Nicole Whiston
The San Diego, Calif., native had the lowest average among the team with a 70.93 after competing in all 15 rounds. Her lowest round of 68 strokes was during the Illini Women's Invitational and the White Sands Invitational. The freshman also recorded a team-best of 11 rounds of par or better during the five tournaments.

Mikayla Bardwell
Bardwell logged 15 rounds of golf during the fall and recorded an average 73.20 per round. Her best round was at the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship with 67 strokes, helping her tie for 16th overall with her best 54-hole score of 215.

Hadley Walts
The Evansville, Ind., native competed in 12 rounds of golf during the fall schedule and averaged 74.75 per round. Her lowest score was at the Cougar Classic and the Illini Women's Invitational, carding a 72. Walts also had her best 54-hole score of 222 at the Cougar Classic and the White Sands Invitational.

Participating Teams (14) – Rankings via Golfstat (Feb. 11)
Arizona State (2), Arkansas (15), Baylor (25), California (72), Clemson (36), Florida State (30), LSU (18), Maryland (58), Michigan (49), South Carolina (5), Stanford (8), Tennessee (42), Texas A&M (37), Virginia (41).

Course Information
Guadalajara Country Club – Guadalajara, Mexico – Par 72 – 6,437 yards

Live Scoring
Scoring updates will be available on Golfstat.com.

Tee Times
Sunday, Feb. 16 – First Round – Play starts at 9:15 a.m. ET
Monday, Feb. 17 – Second Round – Play starts at 9:15 a.m. ET
Monday, Feb. 17 – First nine holes of Third Round – Play starts at 2:15 p.m. ET
Tuesday, Feb. 18 – Final nine holes of Third Round – Play starts at 9:15 ET

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Mikayla Bardwell

Malia Stovall

Hadley Walts

Nicole Whiston

Micheala Williams-Luck

University of Tennessee Athletics