After the first 18 holes of the 2024 Cardinal Cup, the WKU women’s golf team is tied for third, with senior Catie Craig sitting in second place individually, just one shot off the lead. The Lady Toppers are level with host Louisville and trail only Rutgers and Middle Tennessee on the leaderboard.
The tournament, hosted in Louisville, experienced a two-hour delay due to inclement weather, but the Lady Tops managed to handle the conditions well. WKU ranked second-best in the field on Par 5 holes, shooting a combined 1-under par. The team is also in the top five among the 15 teams for both pars (57) and birdies (9).
Notables:
- Catie Craig shot a 2-under 70, finishing second overall, just one stroke behind Rutgers’ Grace Lu. Craig’s round included four birdies and two bogeys.
- Averi Cline and Julia Zigrossi are tied for 21st after both carded 3-over 75s. Cline recorded one birdie, while Zigrossi matched Craig with four birdies.
- Sydney Hackett and Kaylee Dwyer (competing individually) are tied for 36th at 5-over 77. Dwyer had one birdie and six bogeys, while Hackett notched 13 pars and five bogeys.
- Regan Folk (competing individually) and Nina McMurtrey also took part in the tournament. Folk finished her first nine holes with a birdie on No. 17 and a par on No. 18.
Quotable:
“It’s never easy to start the day in a delay, but I’m proud of how the team battled through the conditions to put ourselves in a strong position after 18 holes,” said WKU head coach Adam Gary. “It was great to see Catie and several others get off to a strong start. Catie has put herself in position to compete for medalist honors over the next 36 holes, and our team is right there to make a push towards the top of the leaderboard this weekend as well.”
WKU will continue to push for top honors as the tournament progresses through the weekend.
TEAM LEADERBOARD
1. Rutgers | 291 (-3)
2. Middle Tennessee | 294 (+6)
T3. WESTERN KENTUCKY | 297 (+9)
T3. Louisville | 297 (+9)
T5. James Madison | 298 (+10)
T5. Lipscomb | 298 (+10)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERBOARD
1. Grace Lu, Rutgers | 69 (-3)
2. CATIE CRAIG, WKU | 70 (-2)
T3. Kendall Maynard, MTSU | 71 (-1)
T3. Thienna Hunyh, Louisville | 71 (-1)
T3. Bella Flores, James Madison | 71 (-1)
T3. Carmen Griffiths, Louisville | 71 (-1)
T21. AVERI CLINE, WKU | 75 (+3)
T21. JULIA ZIGROSSI, WKU | 75 (+3)
T36. SYDNEY HACKETT, WKU | 77 (+5)
T36. KAYLEE DWYER*, WKU | 77 (+5)
T64. REAGAN FOLK*, WKU | 80 (+8)
T70. NINA McMURTREY, WKU | 81 (+9)
NEXT UP
WKU tees off four round two at the University of Louisville Golf Club on Saturday at 9:40 a.m. CT alongside Middle Tennessee and Rutgers.
