Parker Truesdale
Senior Staff Writer
After a successful summer playing individual tournaments around the world, the Spartans finally got to compete together for the first time this fall at the Elon Invitational at Alamance Country Club. The UNC Greensboro Women’s Golf Club started the fall season strong with a top-three finish at the event; the Spartans finished at 27 over par for the tournament with an impressive showing on the final day.
The Spartans opened up the event with a 293, sitting eight shots back of the lead. Unfortunately, the team struggled in the second round, firing a 296, falling to third place and 19 shots behind the lead, held by home club Elon. Entering the final day, the young Spartan squad looked for a strong finish in the first event of the season. The Spartans rallied to shoot their best round of the tournament with a 290 but were stagnant on the leaderboard, staying in third place for the event. The host team took advantage of their home course advantage with an impressive win at two under par for the week, 25 shots clear of second place.
This year, the Spartans welcomed three new freshmen and graduate transfer Nicole Lu from UNC Chapel Hill. Lu led the Spartans in the first event of the season with a T-6 finish at 3 over par. She was one of two individuals inside the top 10; Sophomore Grace Holcomb climbed the leaderboard on the final day with a 1-under-par round, moving her to T-9 for the event.
Freshmen Julia Baeumken from Kiel, Germany, and Alex Phelps from Knaphill, England, found themselves in the Spartan’s first event of the season. Both freshmen had promising starts to their Spartan careers; Baeumken fired a pair of 75s on the 36-hole day and finished the event with a 76, giving her a T-23 for the tournament. Phelps struggled in the two opening rounds finishing 10 over par after 36 holes. However, she found form in the final round and rallied a 73, pushing her to T-19 for the tournament. Sophomore Ava Romfo rattled off five birdies en route to a 71 in her final round, helping the team card their best round of the tournament; Romfo matched Phelps, finishing at T-19 for the week.
The Women’s Golf Club was tasked with filling roster spots of two veteran players last year. Senior Hailey Joy and Fifth-Year Tara Bettle played their final rounds as Spartans last year. The two players were consistent starters for the program, both being in the starting lineup since their freshman year. Bettle finished her career in style, making it to the postseason as an individual last spring, where she competed in Franklin, Tennessee, hosted by the Vanderbilt Commodores. Both Joy and Bettle left a positive mark on the programs and left a great challenge to fill their shoes.
With that tremendous challenge, Head Coach Ashley Lenoard looks to have pushed the club in a positive direction with the new additions. The third-place finish at Elon was the club’s best finish since the spring of 2021, and they are looking to build off that momentum with the same lineup at their home tournament on September 26-27 at Grandover Resort. If the team continues this upward trend, they may find themselves in the postseason hunt come spring.
Notable events to look for:
September 26-27 | Grandover Invitational at Grandover Resort in Greensboro, NC
October 10-11 | Pirate Invitational at Greenville Country Club in Greenville, NC
October 21-23 | White Sands Invitational at the Ocean Club Course in Paradise Island, Bahamas
Categories: Campus Sports, Sports
THE CAROLINIAN 
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