No. 15 men’s and No. 19 women’s golf competed in the SAA Championships from April 24-26 in Dickson, Tenn. Men’s golf finished third in their competition, coming up just shy of No. 11 Oglethorpe University for second place. The women’s team finished second, as No. 23 Sewanee won the championship. Because neither team won the SAA title and automatic bid to the NCAA championship, both will have to wait to see if they earn an at-large berth.
“I think we’re close, and both teams were on the cusp,” head women’s golf coach Shelby DeVore said. “It is one of those where it could go either way, so the team needs to put their heads down, practice and be ready if we get the call.”
Men’s Golf
The Trinity men’s golf team finished with a team score of 853 through three rounds across three days. The score put them three strokes short of second place, and 16 strokes away from first-place Sewanee.
Sophomore Jeffrey Forster led the men’s team, who finished as the fifth-best golfer at the championship. He saved his best of the three days for last, as he shot three-under par on the final day. Forster was one of only 12 golfers who shot under par in the championship, and became a member of the All-SAA First Team.
The other Trinity men’s golfer to finish under par was sophomore Sam Rossi. He finished with the team’s second-best score at two under-par, while also having the best individual round of anyone on the team. Rossi shot a score of 68 on the second day, which was four-under par.
Women’s Golf
The women’s team ended their three rounds with a score of 908, which was 13 strokes behind first-place Sewanee. As a team, Trinity improved their score on each day of the tournament. They shot 305 on day one, 303 on day two and finished with a score of 300 on day three. The third day was the team’s best score for a single round all year.
“We obviously got second, but we played three days of great golf,” DeVore said. “I’m really happy with what they did. Each day we got better and better, and even when things were getting harder because they were exhausted and knew they were behind, they pushed through.”
The team had two golfers who earned All-SAA First Team honors in senior Jessica Mason and junior Lauren Huddleston. The pair both finished as top-five golfers in the tournament. Mason finished second individually with a total score of 222 and eight birdies, while Huddleston placed fifth with a score of 225 and seven birdies.
“Jessica has been strong all year, so obviously I was not surprised,” DeVore said. “Lauren was a standout for us. It finally clicked for her, and she saw all her hard work pay off.”
Now both the men’s and women’s teams will wait until May 4 to see if they earn an at-large spot in the NCAA Division III championships. If either team qualifies, the championships will be from May 12-15 in Howey-in-the-Hills, Fla.
