The Kent State women's golf team had an up-and-down day at the first round of the Stanford Intercollegiate Friday, but the Golden Flashes settled in at 12th place after
cheap golf clubs the first round of play for the 16-team field.
Kent State is just six strokes out of sixth place; the highly competitive field features the top four teams in the nation and 14 of the top 50. Also of note, 24 players shot below par in the 89-golfer field.
Senior Mercedes Germino (Necochea, Argentina) led Kent State with a one-under 70, carding three birdies to two bogeys. Her birdie on the par-3 No. 8 helped boost the Golden Flashes up the leader board late in the day. She is tied for 13th overall.
Sophomore Erin Hawe (Walton, New Zealand) had three birdies in her tournament opening round, including a birdie on No. 8, her penultimate hole on Friday. Hawe finished with
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Mandi Morrow (Kent, Ohio) recovered from two early bogeys with a birdie on the par-5 No. 12 – deemed one of the toughest holes in California in part because of a pair of trees in the center of the fairway. It was the start of four birdies in an eight-hole span for Morrow, as she finished with a two-over 73.
Freshman Jennifer Ha (Calgary, Alberta) had just one birdie to four bogeys on Friday, finishing with a three-over 74. Ha is tied for 57th heading into Saturday.
An early double-bogey for Shamira Marshall (Macedonia, Ohio) unfortunately set the wrong tone for the senior, as she finished with a 10-over 81.
Defending national champion UCLA is tied with Washington
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Kent State will begin Saturday's second round off the No. 10 tee at 8:30 a.m. PT. The Golden Flashes will be paired with Oklahoma State and Virginia.
