Quinnipiac University
Babs Steffens Hatter Collegiate
QU Women's Golf Looks to Continue Strong Spring at Babs Steffens Collegiate
3/22/2018 12:02:00 PM | Women's Golf
COURSE INFORMATION
- DeBary Golf and Country Club - DeBary, Fla. - Par 72 (6.006 yards)
- Live Scoring: BirdieFire.com
TEE TIMES AND FORMAT
54 hole (18-18-18), Stroke Play
- Saturday, March 24 -- First Round -- 10 a.m.
- Sunday, March 25 -- Second Round -- 10 a.m.
- Monday, Mach 26 -- Third Round -- 8:30 a.m. (shotgun)
Albany, Bethune Cookman, Boston University, Butler, Cleveland State, Florida Atlantic, Saint Leo, Seminole State, Stetson, Wisconsin-Whitewater, Xaiver, Quinnipiac
LAST TIME OUT
The Bobcats were last in action at the Low Country Intercollegiate on Saturday and Sunday in Hilton head, South Carolina, finishing in a tie for third out of 13 teams. Freshman Queenie Lai finished in a tie for third with a 76-75-151 at the two-day event, while junior Luciana Tobia-Palza was one shot behind in a tie for sixth. The Bobcats finished behind Seton Hall and Albany, while Lai was only four shots off the individual leader.
BACK-TO-BACK MAAC HONORS
Freshman Queenie Lai has won the MAAC Women's Golfer of the Week honor for each of the last two weeks. This past week, she earned it by finishing tied for third at the Low Country Intercollegiate out of 76 competitors with a 76-75-151. Earlier on the same trip, she earned her first award by coming in tied for sixth with a 78-75-153 at the Benbow Invitational in Jacksonville, Florida.
DOMINATING THE AWARDS
The two straight MAAC honors for freshman Queenie Lai (see above) actually makes it three straight weeks that the Bobcats have earned the MAAC Women's Golfer of the Week award while they have competed. On February 28, sophomore Alexandra Sazhin was named the MAAC Golfer of the Week after a strong showing (13th out of over 200 competitors) at the Kiaweh Island Invitational. The Bobcats were idle on the week of March 7 and did not have a nominee.
BOBCATS TAKE THIRD AT BENBOW INVITATIONAL NOTES
The Bobcats finished third overall out of nine teams at the Benbow Invitational on March 12-13, finishing with a two-day 616, 10 shots behind leader Saint John's and four shots behind host Butler. Alexandra Sazhin finished fifth overall among individuals with a 76-76-152, while freshman Queenie Lai tied for sixth with a 78-75-153. Alexandra Sazhin and Queenie Lai each had eagles, with Sazhin holing hers on the first round on Monday and Lai getting hers in the second round on Tuesday. They were the second and third eagles for the Bobcats in 2017-18, after Julia Kemmling also had one in the fall.
SAZHIN BREAKS SINGLE-SEASON BIRDIE RECORD
Sophomore Alexandra Sazhin moved into the top spot in the Quinnipiac record books on Sunday when she bagged three birdies in the second round of the Low Country Intercollegiate. That gave her 46 on the season, surpassing the old school record of 44, which was set by current junior Luciana Tobia-Palza as a freshman in 2015-16.
CAPTAINS ANNOUNCED
Last week, Head Coach John O'Connor announced his captains for the spring season, junior Julia Kemmling and junior Luciana Tobia-Palza. "Julia and Luciana both exemplify team work, focus, desire to win and leadership," said O'Connor. "They come to practice ready to work hard with a positive attitude and a desire to improve the team and make history. Both of these golfers are very proud to be a part of Quinnipiac and the golf team. Julia and Lu are always willing to help the younger golfers on the golf course but more importantly how to make the most of their time at Quinnipiac University. I'm extremely proud to announce Lu and Julia as the golf team captains."
FALL WRAP-UP
The Bobcats were one of four NCAA Division I teams in the country to win three tournaments after winning the Dartmouth Invitational, the Hartford Invitational and the St. John's Invitational. Quinnipiac completed the first semester with its highest rating in program history at 124, just ahead of Albany (145), the Bobcats' biggest threat to a possible "Three-peat".
MAAC PRESEASON COACHES POLL FAVORITES
The Quinnipiac University women's golf team was picked as the favorite to three-peat at the 2018 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Champions, as announced by the conference via social media on Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018. The Bobcats enter the spring semester as back-to-back MAAC Champions and NCAA Tournament participants after winning titles in 2016 and 2017.
GOLF WEEK.COM PRESEASON FAVORITES
Golfweek.com tabbed the Quinnipiac women's golf team as the preseason favorite to win the 2018 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship, as released on Monday, Feb. 5, 2018.
THE BOBCATS AT THE TOP
Three-time conference Coach of the Year John O'Connor's squad currently features the last two MAAC Players and Rookies of the Year in Luciana Tobia-Palza, who earned both awards in 2016, as well as Alexandra Sazhin, who collected both honors last season. In addition, Julia Kemmling has earned all-MAAC honors in each of the last two seasons with back-to-back top 10 finishes at the conference tournament. Estefania Morales also earned all-conference honors in 2017.
UP NEXT
Quinnipiac will next be in action on April 7-8 when it competes at the Navy Spring Invitational at the Naval Academy Golf Club in Annapolis, Maryland, its final competition before the MAAC Championships later in April.
Players Mentioned
