February 20, 2022

No.18/20 Eagles open spring season at Battle at Hilton Head

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. - After recording four top-10 finishes during the fall season, the no.18/20 women's golf team heads to Hilton Head Island, S.C. for the Battle of Hilton Head to kick off the 2022 spring season.

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. - After recording four top-10 finishes during the fall season, the no.18/20 women's golf team heads to Hilton Head Island, S.C. for the Battle at Hilton Head to kick off the 2022 spring season on Monday, Feb. 21.

The Eagles will compete at the two day event hosted by Lincoln Memorial at the Robert Trent Jones course at the Palmetto Dunes Oceanfront Resort. The course holds a par of 72 and a total yardage of 5934 yards.

This is the fourth straight season that the Eagles have competed at the Battle at Hilton Head event. Last year, the Eagles won the event championship by one stroke, with a 53-over 629 through the two rounds, firing a 312 in the final 18. On the week, C-N was the best par-3 and par-5 scoring team at 14-over and 8-over, respectively. It was also on par for 100 holes, the most in the field. In the four years C-N has competed at the event, they have finished no lower than third at the Lowcountry event.

"We've got a solid starting five going into Hilton Head and we're ready to compete," says head women's golf coach Kelsey Hutson.

Individually, Maeve Cummins (Waringstown, Northern Ireland) finished tied for third at 10-over. She carded a 79 in the round with five bogeys all on par-4s and a double bogey on the par-5 ninth hole. Last year, Cummins was the best par-3 scorer, being the only player in the entire field to shoot in the red on such holes at 14-under.

The Eagles return to the links after recording a seventh-place finish at the Flagler College Fall Slam in St. Augustine, Fla. on Oct. 26. Ellie Haughton (Lincolnshire, England) notched five birdies in the second round to move up fifteen spots on the final day of the tournament to record a ninth-place finish at the event. Haughton's six total birdies tied her for the third most of any golfer at the Fall Slam.

Carson-Newman enters the contest ranked 12th in the first NCAA D-II South region poll. It is the first time the women's golf team has been ranked in the NCAA South Regional since Apr. 18, 2019 when the team finished the 2018-19 season ranked 14th in the region.

"I can't believe we're already ranked this season," says Hutson. "Our word this year was 'Believe' and we've believed in ourselves and our abilities and the girls have done well."

The field at the Battle at Hilton Head with nationally and regionally ranked foes, including no. 12/13 Lee, no. 16/22 Lenoir-Rhyne and no. 14/15 Rogers State. Lee sits at ninth in the South Region, while Lenoir-Rhyne is ranked right behind them at 10th. Rogers State holds the top spot in the NCAA D-II Central region poll.

The field also features fellow SAC schools Catawba, Lincoln Memorial, Queens, and Wingate, along with region foes North Greenville, Barton, Young Harris, Converse, Belmont Abbey, and UNC Pembroke. NAIA and future Peach Belt Conference member USC Beaufort will also compete at the event.

"Lee is one of the toughest teams in our region but we have had success on this course," says Hutson. "We've been looking over the course and most of this team was on the team that has played their before so we know it well and hope to use that to our advantage."

Fans can follow the action with live stats available here. The two day, 36-hole tournament kicks off with a shotgun start at 9:00 AM on Monday, Feb. 21. More information on the Carson-Newman women's golf team can be found at cneagles.com.