Story by Keith Jaco, Staff Writer
The Murray State women’s golf team captured its second-straight OVC championship in as many years on Wednesday at The Shoals Golf Club in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
Murray State handled its eight-shot lead with care on Wednesday, shooting 303 as a team and securing back-to-back championships for the third time in program history.
Head Coach Velvet Milkman said her team’s resilliency was on full display as other team’s tried to make a late charge for the title on Wednesday.
“They don’t get any easier,” Milkman said. “I’m proud of the fight that we showed. We talked all week about being resillient and strong, and they did that down the stretch.
The team leaderboard was tight after 18 holes of play Monday, as the Racers led the Jacksonville State Gamecocks by one stroke. Eastern Kentucky and Austin Peay each kept with the pace, scoring 312 and earning shares of third place.
The Racers led early and often in the three-day tournament. Sophomore Lucila Puente Rodriguez de Austria, from Sevilla, Spain, led the way on day one, posting the only par score. This earned Puente sole possession of first place. Senior Moa Folke, from Tranas, Sweden, followed closely behind her teammate after shooting a 73 and securing a share of second place.
Murray State set the tone for the rest of the field on day two, scoring a round-low 288 and pushing their lead to eight strokes. The Racers round two score was the third-lowest round in OVC championship history. Folke followed up her day one performance with a round two 69, moving her up to first place, two shots ahead of Jacksonville State junior Valentina Giraldo.
Rodriguez de Austria slipped two spots into third place after posting a 76 on day two. Sophomore Raeysha Surendran, from Selangor, Malaysia, finished Tuesday tied for fourth place, giving the Racers command of three of the top five spots on the leaderboard. Milkman was vocal about Surendran’s impact on the Racers this week.
“Raeysha had a fantastic tournament,” Milkman said. “ She was truly the key for us helping to win the championship.”
Folke fell off pace on day three, scoring a 79 and earning third place for the tournament. Teammate Rodriguez de Austria leaped over Folke on the leaderboard Wednesday, taking home second place after scoring a 73. Surendran also finished day three with a 73 and earned fourth place with a three-day total of 222, helping the Racers claim back-to-back OVC titles.
Jacksonville State’s Valentina Giraldo took home first place for individuals after beating out Rodriguez de Austria by three strokes.
The OVC All-Tournament team was heavily dominated by Racers, as Rodriguez, Surendran and Folke all earned respective spots. Elsa Moberly, from Eastern Kentucky, and Valentina Giraldo, from Jacksonville State, each received All-Tournament nods as well.
This year’s OVC championship marks Head Coach Velvet Milkman’s 11th career title, all with Murray State.
Milkman said she was thrilled with her team’s championship performance.
“I’m very proud of the fight that they showed,” said Milkman. “We talked all week about being resilient and strong and they did that coming down the stretch.”
Milkman stressed the importance of working as a team after receiving help from all five starters.
“It’s a team championship, we tell them all the time one player can’t win a championship and one hole doesn’t win a championship, everybody has to do their best, it’s truly a team effort.”
Murray State will be one of 74 teams to participate in the NCAA Tournament on May 19. The Racers will travel to one of four sites: Austin, Texas, Madison, Wisconsin, Stanford, California or Tallahassee, Florida.