By Jess Westendorf
The Iowa women’s golf team will head to the Central District Invitational in Port St. Lucie, Florida, today and Tuesday to continue its spring slate.The Hawkeyes will open competition at 8:30 a.m. today, with round two following shortly after. The final round is set for 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday.
The Central District Challenge will be hosted by the St. Lucie Trail Golf Course. The course registers as a par 72, stretching 5,946 yards.
Iowa will send six players to the tournament. Leading Iowa will be freshman Sophie Liu, with junior Jessica Ip following. Junior Morgan Kukla, sophomore Shawn Rennegarbe, senior Jessie Sindlinger, and junior Elisa Suarez round out the Hawkeyes’ lineup.
Last time out, the Hawkeyes opened their spring slate in match-play at the Trilogy Collegiate Quad Matches in Gilbert, Arizona.
Iowa secured third place at the competition against Idaho, Colorado State, and BYU. In the first round, Iowa fell to Idaho but turned things around in the second round to defeat Colorado State.
Rennegarbe won both of her matches — the first round she finished three up with two to play against Idaho and in the final round she won 3-to-4.
Suarez also stood out for the Hawkeyes; she took first in both matches, winning seven up in the first round and 7-to-5 in the second round. Liu ended her first round with a tie; she battled back in the second round to win one up.
This past fall, Iowa recorded the ninth-best scoring season average in the program’s history with a stroke average of 77.0.
Iowa will compete against 13 other teams in the tournament, including four Big Ten teams: Michigan State, Maryland, Nebraska, and Rutgers.
