ND Women’s Golf
Albrecht, Ayer lead Irish to strong start in Bryan National Collegiate Invitational
Mia Berry | Wednesday, April 11, 2018
In their final regular-season tournament, the Irish placed 13th overall at the Bryan National Collegiate Invitational, which took place in Greensboro, North Carolina, over Friday and Saturday. The three-round event featured a strong field with six top-25 teams.
After the opening two rounds of the tournament Friday, the Irish were in ninth place in the 17-team field after shooting for a combined score of 599 to put themselves 23-over-par. In addition to a top-10 team placing, the Irish also had two golfers, junior Emma Albrecht and sophomore Mia Ayer, within the top 10 of the field. Ayers was tied for third place with a two-round, even-par 144, and Albrecht was tied for seventh place with a two-round, 1-over 145. Irish head coach Susan Holt said she was very pleased with the performances of Ayer and Albrecht.
“This was an event that had a lot of really highly ranked players, and Emma and Mia did well to place in the top 10 [through the first two rounds],” Holt said. “Emma has been solid all year, and it was great to see Mia have a breakout tournament.”
The top-10 placement for the Irish didn’t last too long, however. A third-round 325 dropped them four spots Saturday to 13th overall.
“The saturated course conditions from the start and rainy and cold temperatures played a big role in our third-round score,” Holt said. “The conditions were tough, and we just didn’t manage it well.”
At the conclusion of play, Albrecht would stand tied for 12th overall, while Ayers would finish tied for 21st. Albrecht shot a three-round 224 to finish 8-over-par, and Ayers shot a three-round total of 226 — including a final round 82 — to finish 10-over-par. Juniors Isabella DiLisio and Maddie Rose Hamilton would finish tied for 63rd and 78th overall, respectively. Freshman Abby Heck finished tied for 68th place to round out the Irish squad.
With the conclusion of the regular season, the Irish will now turn their attention to the ACC championship, which Holt said she and her team are expecting to be a strong test.
“We are looking forward to the ACC championship,“ Holt said. “It will challenge us to post three really good rounds to be in contention. As always, the championship will be a real test for us and be great preparation for the NCAA tournament.”
The Irish will resume competition April 21-23 in the ACC championship in Greensboro, North Carolina.
