Notre Dame competed in the Schooner Fall Classic in Norman, Oklahoma, this past weekend and tied for sixth amongst 12 teams.
This was the first tournament of the season for the Irish, and head coach Susan Holt said her team’s mentality coming into the event was one of excitement to start the season and a readiness to compete. The team’s combined score of +19 and sixth-place finish were results the team can build upon, she added.
“I thought, first tournament of the year, we’re just getting back into the routine of traveling and competing,” Holt said. “I thought we could have done better, but there was a lot of positive points to the weekend. We had a lot of good scoring from four of our players, all pretty consistent. We definitely have things to work on, but I think we’re definitely gonna be able to make those necessary adjustments and we’ll be just that much better when we get to Texas State in a couple of weeks.”
Focusing on those adjustments necessary for her team, Holt pointed to its play on par 5s in particular.
“We didn’t play the par 5s very well at all any of the rounds,” Holt said. “We’re pretty long hitters and pretty accurate, so I was a little surprised by the par-5 score being as poor as it was. I think it just comes down to playing a little bit smarter on those holes and putting ourselves in better positions to make birdies and pars. We discussed that and — looking forward — those are just some of the little things that make a big impact on your score and that we need to make adjustments on.”
Holt emphasized, however, she has confidence in her players and the strength of the line up despite their performance in their first event not being up to par.
“We’ve got really good players, and I think, individually, we had some good showings across the board, and I just think that we need to keep it progressing and getting better every time we compete,” Holt said. “We’re at a pretty good starting point, and we can definitely build on it.”
Holt said sophomores Emma Albrecht and Isabella DiLisio were impressive in the early season, as both finished in the top 25.
“Emma played really well,” Holt said. “She had a really good freshman year, and it’s nice to see her being able to pick up where she left off.
“I think Isabella playing three pretty solid rounds was good for her confidence. She struggled a bit in the spring, and it’s nice to see her kinda getting her game back.”
Ultimately, Holt said she feels her team had a strong showing this weekend and has established a solid starting point to build on.
“I told the girls they’re close,” Holt said. “Again, it just goes back to cleaning things up and doing the little things better. I think each one of them can do that and save one or two shots a round. And at the end of a tournament, that could be upwards of 10 to 15 shots. And they know that, and I feel pretty confident they’ll do what they can to make those adjustments.”
The Irish will compete next at the Texas State Jim West Challenge Invite. The two-day tournament is set to start Oct. 9 at the Carleton Woods Club in The Woodlands, Texas.
