March 3, 2013

Taylor's Hole-In-One Highlights Day One At Kiawah Island Classic

GREENSBORO, N.C. – UNCG senior women's golfer Courtney Taylor (Gastonia, N.C./Ashbrook) struck her first career collegiate hole-in-one to highlight the Spartans on day one of the 33^rd annual Kiawah Island Classic at the Cougar Point Golf Course on Kiawah Island. Taylor's eagle helped the Spartans finish in a tie for 13^th overall after the first round of the 54-hole tournament with a team score of 314.

Taylor stepped up to the 12^th tee box Sunday afternoon with a slight breeze in her face in the early afternoon. She pulled out a 4 Hybrid club from her bag on the 156-yard hole and drilled a shot which landed on the front of the green and rolled up into the hole for just her second hole-in-one of her life. She finished the day shooting a 5-over par 77 to finish in a tie for 34^th overall.

Freshman Sammie Buchanan (Bluffton, S.C./Bluffton) was the Spartans' top finisher on the day with a 4-over par 76. Buchanan posted two birdies on the afternoon but was limited by a double-bogey on the fourth hole and one on her final hole of the day, the 18^th which produced the most over-par scores of the day (51) of any hole on the Cougar Point Course.

Sophomore Fanny Cnops (Gent, Belgium/K.A. Voskenslaan) also carded a 5-over par 77 to sit in a tie for 34^th overall. Cnops was 1-under through 11 holes and even through 14 but she bogeyed 15 and then double bogeyed the two holes playing the toughest on the day, No. 17 and No. 18.

Tournament host the College of Charleston posted a 4-over par 292 on the first day to hold a nine-shot lead over second place and nationally ranked Campbell (301). The College of Charleston's Stacey Tomlinson and Harin Lee of St. John's hold the individual lead with 2-under par 70 scores.

The Spartans will continue the Kiawah Island Classic Monday with round two playing at the Oaks Point Golf Course. The Oaks Point course played the harder of the two courses in day one with an average score of 82.59 while the Cougar Point course posted a score of 79.33.

- UNCG -