“[It was] a great way to start off the year. The girls showed up and took care of business,” head coach Colton Cowan said. “We had a strong showing yesterday, putting us in a great spot. Then today, the girls did a great job focusing on the task at hand and executing our golf shots. We stuck to our plan and process and played good golf.”
Henderson as a team got 12 birdies out of its lineup on the day, including five from Academic All-American Allie Bianchi and three from last year’s All-GAC First Team member Gracen Blount, en route to the victory.
Blount maintained her one-stroke lead heading into day two as she shot 2-under 70 through the second 18 to win her first tournament as a Reddie. Bianchi had the best day of anyone in the field, carding a 3-under 69 to move up four spots to second place.
Blount and Bianchi each moved into the record books with their performances this weekend. A junior from Hot Springs, Arkansas, Blount tied for the third-best single-day performance in program history with her 2-under 70 round on a par 72. Bianchi tied her own record for the best round in HSU women’s golf history on a par 72 with her score of 3-under 69.
The Natural State duo also rewrote the best individual event record book, as Blount made history with a program-best 3-under 141 for the weekend. Bianchi backed up her counterpart with the program’s second-best event showing on a par 72 with an even 144 in the two days of competition.
Daphney Tilton tied for 11th with a slew of other golfers as she shot 5-over 77 for her second round to finish at 8-over 152. Kathleen Escobar and Karen Lee both shot 17-over 161 to finish in a tie for 47th.
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