After a long four-month break in the collegiate golf season, the Vandals teed off in the Bowling Green State Women’s Intercollegiate on Feb. 11 in Arizona.
A sizable stint like this can often present a challenge to a team that has not had a substantial number of reps this off-season. However, Idaho placed seventh at their first tournament of the spring, led by Emma Heyman, who finished 10th.
Kaylin Johnson finished 18th. Emma Kang and Zoe Newell finished 30th and 35th, respectively. Jenna Bruggeman finished 45th.
The Vandals also competed in the GCU invitational in Phoenix on Feb. 25. The team finished at 43-over, which secured them 10th place out of 13 schools. However, Idaho finished lower than any of its Big Sky counterparts, primarily due to the team struggling significantly in the second round.
The host school, Grand Canyon, was the only school to finish below par, finishing at 7-under and claiming the tournament title. Four of the Antelopes’ golfers finished in the top 10 in this tournament, including Calynne Rosholt, who tied for first place out of 76 participants.
For Idaho, Zoe Newell had the best finish, ending up tied for 15th place after a 4-over performance. Other than the top two golfers in this tournament, Newell had the best third-round score of anybody.
Emma Kang finished 8-over, tying for 28th place. Kaylin Johnson finished at 18-over and tied for 60th place. Emma Heyman and Laura Caamano both struggled, finishing at 20-over and 25-over, respectively. They both finished in the bottom 10% of participants in this tournament.
The Vandals have some time off before their next appearance, which is on March 24 at the Georgia State Invitational in Johns Creek.
Liam Bradford can be reached at arg-sports@uidaho.edu