Stoney Creek at Wintergreen to Host Conference Teams
NELLYSFORD, Va. --- The ODAC Men's and Women's Golf Championships will be competed at a new location this weekend as Stoney Creek Golf Course in Nellysford, Va., welcomes the conference's teams to the central mountain region. Stoney Creek is one of two courses associated with Wintergreen Resort. ODAC golfers begin play on Sunday, April 24 and continue thru Tuesday, April 26 in the 54-hole championship format.
The conference contingent will use all three of Stoney Creek's nine-hole layouts situated at the base of the mountain leading up to the resort. The ODAC men open first round play at 8:00 a.m. on the Monocan Course and make the turn to the Shamokin Course. The custom track will be played at 6,910 yards and par of 72. The ODAC women tee-off in the opening round at 9:30 a.m. on the Tuckahoe Course and finish on the Monocan nine. The women's custom layout will also be played at a par-72 standard and cover 5,805 yards.
Host Course: Stoney Creek G.C. at Wintergreen Resort
Official Tournament Scorecards: Men Women
Live Scoring via Golfstat: Men Women
First Round Tee Times: Men Women
Sunday's start will mark the fourth ODAC women's championship in conference history as it continues to grow following its inaugural season in 2012-13. Randolph-Macon College won the first two titles, but it was Washington and Lee University that took home the team crown last season. Weather shortened both the men's and women's events to just 36 holes, but that didn't deter the Generals from posting team rounds of 320 and 316 to win its first women's crown by 15 strokes (636 to 651) over Bridgewater College.
The Eagles featured the individual champion as Christina Herbert carded the two lowest rounds of the tournament, a pair of 73's, on the way to a 2-over par 146 and eight-stroke victory over W&L's Liza Freed (75-79). Two-time ODAC champion and former ODAC Player of the Year, Olivia Bowling from Randolph-Macon, chimed in second at 156 (78-78), while the Generals' duo of 2015 ODAC Player and Rookie of the Year, Mary-Frances Hall, and Rachael Wright registered scores of 157 (79-78) and 158 (81-77) to round out the top-three, respectively.
Entering this year's championship, six competing women's golfers are rated 85th for better in NCAA Division III by Golfstat. Herbert leads the charge as the fourth-rated player with an ODAC-best 74.9 per round average. Freed (77.2) is slotted 17th in the country, while Bowling (78.1) chimes in at #20. BC's Marin Warring (77.8) and Andrea Walker (80.6) sit 28th and 85th, respectively, while W&L's Hall (80.0) splits the Eagles' pair as the 60th-ranked golfer.
Bridgewater enters as the team favorite with an ODAC-best 318.3 per round average. The Eagles are buoyed by a #15 rating, with Washington and Lee and its 320.8 average sit just five slots back at #20. Randolph-Macon owns a 430.2 average and holds down the #31 ranking.
On the men's side, Guilford hoisted its fifth straight and ODAC-record 15th overall conference title last season. The Quakers posted a 293 in round one followed by a tournament-low 288 over the final 18 holes to win by 14 strokes over Washington and Lee (581 to 595). Randolph-Macon (604) chimed in third, powered by a 24-shot improvement from a day-one 314 to the second-lowest team round of the event at 290 in round two.
Quakers occupied the top three positions on the individual leaderboard, with Drew Thompons taking home medalist honors at 2-under par 142 (71-71). Teammates Harrison Frye and Ty Palmer tied for second at even-par 144, although they took different routes to get there. Frye posted a pair of 72's, while Palmer rebounded from a first-round 75 for a tournament-best 69 on the second day. Generals duo Luke Farley (74-72) and Conley Hurst (72-74) capped the top-five tied for fourth at 2-over 146.
Five ODAC golfers competing at Stoney Creek this weekend feature in Golfstat's top-101. Virginia Wesleyan College's Evan Cox headlines the list at #21 and armed with the conference's best average at 72.8. W&L's Farley (74.4) is poised for another run at an individual title as the 43rd rated player in NCAA Division III. Hampden-Sydney College's Alex Simmons (74.3) is 69th in the country, while Guilford's Justin Perdue (74.0) sits closely behind at #74. H-SC's Jamie Agnew (75.4) is rated 101st in the nation.
Four conference teams rank inside Golfstat's top-50 programs, with Guilford leading the way at #17. The Quakers own the league's best team average at 297.7, but just 3.4 strokes per round separate GC from fourth on the list. The Generals sit at 298.7 and 21st in the national rankings. Virginia Wesleyan's climb up the ODAC ladder continues as the Marlins are 16.1 strokes better than at the close of 2014-15 with a 298.8 average towards a #32 national rating. Hampden-Sydney is just outside the top-three at 301.1 and 44th in the country.
Live scoring will be available for both the men’s and women’s events thru Golfstat. For more information, visit the websites of the any of the participating schools, or go to the ODAC’s championship website by clicking HERE. Don’t forget to become a fan of the ODAC on Facebook and follow the ODAC on Twitter at @odacathletics.
*Golfstat's rankings are current as of 4/22/16; the rankings are weighted based on a formula and do not use straight average to determine rank position.