Grace Golf: Marshall Leads Lancers At St. Francis Invite
FORT WAYNE – Grace’s women’s golf team kicked off the spring season on Friday and Saturday.
The Lady Lancers finished seventh out of 11 teams at the St. Francis Invitational, dropping their team score by eight strokes between the rounds.
Friday’s round was played at Cherry Hill Golf Club. The Lady Lancers shot a 343 as a team, finishing ahead of fellow Crossroads League schools Indiana Wesleyan, Spring Arbor and Mt. Vernon Nazarene while sitting just one stroke behind St. Francis.
“I was really pleased with the way the girls played on Friday. Our practice time has been limited by the weather, so to come out with that as our first round of the spring is really good,” said head coach Denny Duncan. “The wind and wet ground made the course brutally difficult! Stevie and Anna were especially sharp today.”
Saturday’s round was held at Cobblestone Golf Club in Kendallville, Ind. Every team dropped their scores with near-perfect playing conditions, including the Lady Lancers who fired a 335.
Anna Marshall led Grace with a consistent 83-83 to finish in 18th place out of 64 golfers. Stevie Luebbert’s 167 (83-84) was just one stroke behind Marshall.
Sydney Abbott carded identical rounds of 85, and Lauren Keiser showcased the biggest improvement by going 92-83. Libby Tully rounded out the team’s scorecard by finishing with a tournament total of 185.
“We shot a solid score yesterday and improved by eight strokes today. I’m extremely pleased with our performance,” Duncan said. “It’s such a pleasure for me to watch this young group begin to mature. We are still all freshmen and sophomores, but they have a lot of experience. This group is going to enjoy a lot of success over the next couple of years.”
The Lady Lancers will divide up their squad next week. On Thursday and Friday, half the team will compete at Brookwood Golf Club, hosted by Huntington, and on Friday/Saturday, the other half of the team will take on the Bethel Invitational at Blackthorn Golf Course.