Women's golf ties for 18th at Kiawah Classic

On Feb. 26, the Mercer women’s golf team headed to Kiawah, S.C. for the Edwin Watts/Kiawah Island Classic.
When asked about the team’s performance on day one of the tournament, Head Coach Gary Guyer simply said, “We could have played better.”
Sophomore Lacey Fears fired a two-over 74 to lead Mercer to a tie for 15th in Sunday’s opening round of play. Through her first 14 holes on Sunday, Fears was four-over par.  In the final four holes, she rallied with two pars and two birdies to help lift her to a tie for 10th place individually.  Her 74 outpaced 169 other competitors on day one.
Sophomore Mary Alice Murphy and freshman Sarah Louise Brown each needed 79 strokes on Sunday and were tied for 56th overall.  Kaitlin Marrin recorded an 83, while Aurelie Wiriath shot 88.  Marrin was 124th overall while Wiriath sat in a tie for 166th.
After day two, the Mercer women’s golf team was tied for 17th with a score of 625 through the first two rounds of play. The Bears improved by five shots on the second day of competition, recording a second-round cumulative team score of 310.
“We played better today, but so did most of the other teams,” Mercer head coach Gary Guyer said.  “We had ideal conditions, but had difficulty taking advantage of it.”
Lacey Fears, finished day two’s action tied for seventh after shooting an even-par 72.   Her second-round 72 came by the good virtue of 12 pars and three birdies. Fears’ two-round total of 146 had her only three shots off the leader’s pace and ahead of 172 other competitors.
Mary Alice Murphy improved upon her first round total by one stroke, booking a 78 to slot her in a tie for 75th overall.  Sarah Louise Brown shot her second-straight 79 at the event and was tied for 87th overall.
Kaitlin Marrin needed 84 strokes on Monday and was tied for 155th with a tournament total of 167.  Her classmate Aurelie Wiriath is slotted in a tie for 161st after following her previous rounds’ 88 with an 81.
The Mercer women’s golf team finished tied for 18th place in the 33-team competition. On Tuesday, the Bears recorded a 308, bringing their tournament total to 933.
“We played better each day, and that is one of our primary goals,” Coach Guyer said.  “Today we had a chance to go low, as we were two-under par through nine holes.  Our focus will be on putting for the rest of the year, because tee to green we are as good as anybody.”
Lacey Fears finished tied for 10th overall with a score of 223. In her final round of play, Fears recorded two birdies and seven pars on her way to a final round 77.  Her 10th place finish outpaced 169 other competitors.
Sophomore Mary Alice Murphy posted a team-best score of 75 in the final round to solidify an individual tie for 55th. The rest of the squad rounded out with Sarah Louise Brown’s 237, Aurelie Wiriath’s 246 and Kaitlin Marrin’s 248.