Women's Golf Struggles in First Round of Liz Murphey Classic
4/1/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
Gavier, Morrow lead Flashes through first-day action
ATHENS, Ga. – The Kent State women's golf team struggled against a challenging field Friday in the first round of the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic, hosted at the University of Georgia Golf Course. The Golden Flashes combined for an 18-over 306, good for 20th place in the 23-team field.
All 23 teams, including the 33rd-ranked Golden Flashes, are ranked in the top 80 nationally by Golf Week. The course measures at 6,335 yards.
The Liz Murphey Classic is in its first year of a new scoring system to determine the team champion. The unique scoring format for the tournament allowed each team to play with their teammates in a five-some, varying from the usual threesomes with opposing teams. Each team carded its best four scores per hole, allowing each golfer the opportunity to score for their team.
Individually, senior Martina Gavier (Cordoba, Argentina) and junior Mandi Morrow (Kent, Ohio) paced the Golden Flashes with rounds of five-over 77. Gavier's scores on each hole were eligible to count, while Morrow's tallies were countable on 17 of 18 holes. Both are tied for 42nd among 120 golfers.
Junior Mercedes Germino (Necochea, Argentina) was a stroke behind with a six-over 78, aided by back-to-back birdies on No. 12 and No. 13. Her scores were countable in 17 of 18 holes, and she is tied for 59th.
Junior Shamira Marshall (Macedonia, Ohio) and senior Sarah Bradley (Cambridge, New Zealand) rounded out Kent State's effort with an 82 and 85, respectively.
Purdue leads the team standings through the first round with a four-under 284. Duke's Aleja Cangrejo and Hannah Thomson of Florida State are atop the leaderboard with matching two-under 70s.
The Golden Flashes will begin Saturday's second round at 9 a.m.
Kent State scores
T42. Martina Gavier 77 +5
T42. Mandi Morrow 77 +5
T59. Mercedes Germino 78 +6
T102. Shamira Marshall 82 +10
T113. Sarah Bradley 85 +13
Team scores
1. (5) Purdue -4 284
2. (2) Alabama -2 286
T3. (4) Duke +3 291
T3. (13) Georgia +3 291
5. (30) Florida State +5 293
T6. (12) Arkansas +6 294
T6. (18) Auburn +6 294
T6. (7) Virginia +6 294
T6. (16) Wake Forest +6 294
T10. Kennesaw St. +7 295
T10. (25) Oklahoma +7 295
T12. (22) Michigan St. +8 296
T12. (38) South Carolina +8 296
14. (21) North Carolina +9 297
T15. (28) Florida +12 300
T15. (29) Ohio State +12 300
17. (26) Notre Dame +14 302
18. (6) LSU +15 303
19. Furman +16 304
20. (33) Kent State +18 306
21. Kentucky +19 307
T22. (32) Chattanooga +23 311
T22. Georgia State +23 311
