Women’s Golf Embarks on 8-Day, 3-Tournament Stretch

TROY, Ala. – It's sink or swim time for the Troy women's golf team as the Trojans embark on an eight-day, three-tournament run beginning Monday and Tuesday at the UNF Collegiate in Jacksonville, Fla., at the Jacksonville Golf & Country Club.

The trek through Florida continues in Daytona Beach for the Lady Cat Invitational Thursday and Friday before the Trojans head to Tampa for the Spring Break Shootout the following Monday and Tuesday.

"We're excited to get to some good weather and some good golf courses, and hopefully play our way into shape a little bit," head coach Randy Keck said. "We've had a tough winter with a lot of rain and a lot of cold weather, and I think we're a little rustier than we normally would be this time of year."

The Trojans have played twice this spring with an 11^th place finish at the Amelia Island Collegiate and then a fifth-place performance a week later at the Islander Classic. Nicole Lorup finished third and second, respectively, and took home Sun Belt Golfer of the Week honors for her effort.

Lorup shot three rounds under par over the two events with two more rounds at even par – she has placed in the top five in five of Troy's seven tournaments this season and carries a 0.40 score vs. par into this three-tournament stretch. She is the only Sun Belt player with two individual wins this season and ranks second in the league with her 72.20 stroke average.

"She is such a solid player," Keck said. "Her average rounds are better than most normal rounds and when she puts it all together, I feel like she is one of the best players in the country. Coming out of the winter, she is not as sharp as she'd like to be, but the last three days or so she's hit the ball a lot better."

Troy is second in the Sun Belt averaging a 9.40 over-par score per round and is one of just two teams in the league (Arkansas State) to win an event this season.

Joining Lorup in the first of the three legs of the road trip will be Elisabeth Preus (2.50), ShaeLee Scarberry (3.10), Anna Claire Little (4.00) and Ainsley Cowart (4.55) … those golfers comprise one of the youngest teams in the country with two freshmen and three sophomores.

"It is really exciting to have such a young team because they are so talented," Keck said. "The next two or three years with this group is going to be a lot of fun."

Preus has fired three rounds in the red this season and has seen all but one of her cards count towards the team score, while Scarberry has an individual win and three top 10 finishes on her resume this season. Little and Cowart both had identical starts to the spring (77.33) after playing within eight-tenths of a stroke of each other in the fall.

The Field
Troy, Cal State Fullerton, Chattanooga, Cincinnati, Daytona State, Delaware, Eastern Kentucky, Georgetown, Georgia Southern, Jacksonville, Murray State, North Florida, Sam Houston, Seton Hall, South Alabama and Western Kentucky

T-Time
With 36 holes on tap for Monday, teams will play a shotgun start beginning at 7:30 a.m. (CT) and Tuesday's final round gets underway at 7:45 a.m. (CT) also with a shotgun start.

Women’s Golf Embarks on 8-Day, 3-Tournament Stretch

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Players Mentioned

Ainsley Cowart

Anna Claire Little

Nicole Lorup

Elisabeth Preus

ShaeLee Scarberry

Troy University Athletics