YPSILANTI, Mich. — The Fire struggled as they kicked off the national tournament Tuesday against the best in the country on day one of the NAIA Women's Golf National Championship.
SEU saw four of its five golfers finish within a stroke of each other, with the fifth close behind, showing a tightly grouped effort from the squad. Maria Stephens led the way for the Fire with a first-round 81, while three teammates finished just one stroke back.
In the team standings, Southeastern sits in 22nd place out of a competitive 30-team field. Top-ranked University of British Columbia lived up to its billing, leading the tournament with a team score of 297 (+9). Marian (Ind.) University is in second with 301 strokes (+13), followed by No. 2-ranked Keiser University at 306 (+18).
Sun Conference standout Sharon Shan of SCAD-Savannah set the pace in the individual standings, firing a 7-under-par 65 to lead by four strokes. Jessica Ng of British Columbia is second at 69 (-3), followed by Maddi Kamas of Oklahoma City with a 71 (-1). The top four players are currently under par, while fifth place sits even.
Stephens finished tied for 71st in the 156-player field after her round of 81 (+9).
Madelyn Campbell, Mariana Espinosa, and Alejandra Cuellar each carded rounds of 82 (+10), placing them in a tie for 84th.
The Fire return to action Wednesday morning for the second round at Eagle Crest Golf Club, looking to climb the leader board and make a push to make the cut in this year's tournament.
