A rough first and second round performance caused the Kent State women’s golf team to finish in the middle of the pack in the Mercedes Benz Collegiate in Knoxville, Tenn. 

The Flashes finished the tournament in sixth place and shot 31-over-par (883). The team made some improvements in the third round, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit from the first two rounds. 

“The course conditions were tough for everyone, but we struggled making adjustments to the greens and the type of grass around the greens,” coach Casey VanDamme said. “Specifically, our short game struggled, and some of our players had way more putts than normal.” 

The tournament also marks the end of the fall season for the Flashes. Despite the less-than-desirable tournament performance, VanDamme was proud of the Flashes for finishing strong. 

“We had some people play well with the last nine holes of the event, so that was a good way to cap off the fall,” VanDamme said. “It was a long fall for everybody, and I think we were worn down a little bit from our schedule.” 

Round one

The Flashes kicked things off with a mediocre score of 15-over-par (299) in round one.

Veronika Kedronova, once again, led the charge for the Flashes. The sophomore, fresh off her victory at the Marilynn Smith Sunflower Invitational, shot an opening-round score of two-over-par (73). 

Freshman Isabella Goyette followed up Kedronova with a round one score of two-over-par (73), as well. 

The team was tied for eighth place out of 13 teams following round one. 

Round two

The Flashes’ struggles continued into round two, as the team shot 12-over-par (296). The team managed to bump up a spot on the leaderboard, moving into a seventh-place tie. 

Kedronova’s impressive outing continued into round two. She shot even-par for the round (71) and two-over-par (144) through two rounds. 

She was tied for fifth place following round two. 

Leon Takagi finished round two with eight pars and a birdie en route to a score of three-over-par (74). The junior shot eight-over-par (150) overall, and sat in a tie for 33rd place following round two.

Aryn Matthews also contributed a solid round two performance for the Flashes. The freshman finished the round with a score of four-over-par (75) and shot 10-over-par (152) after two rounds. 

A rough first-round outing pushed her into a 46th-place tie. 

The Flashes trailed first-place Miami by 18 strokes heading into round three. 

Round three

Kedronova remained a bright spot for the Flashes in round three, where she scored two eagles and shot one-over-par (72) for the round. She concluded the tournament with a strong performance of three-over-par (216). 

The sophomore finished in a 10th-place tie. For Kedronova, it was her fourth top-10 finish of the season. 

“She had a great fall for us, and we expect continued improvement from her,” VanDamme said. “She did a good job of hanging in there when she didn’t have her A-game, yet she still hung in there for a top-10 finish.” 

Goyette bounced back from a rough round two outing with the best round of any Flash at the tournament. She shot two-under-par (69) in the final round to finish the tournament with a score of nine-over-par (222) and tied for 26th place. 

“She made good adjustments specifically around the greens, and then she got a couple good breaks too,” VanDamme said. “She’s a great ball striker, and we look forward to big things coming up from her in the future.” 

Takagi rounded out the Flashes’ solid performances with a final-round score of two-over-par (73). She ended the tournament in a 32nd-place tie with a score of 10-over-par (223). 

As a team, the Flashes shot four-over-par (288) in the closing round to move into sixth place. Miami held on to win the tournament, outscoring the Flashes by 21 strokes. 

Reflection and looking ahead 

This tournament concludes the fall season for the Flashes, who now look towards starting off strong in the spring season. VanDamme said the fall season showed how talented and deep the team is, but it also showed the group lacked experience. 

“We had a lot of opportunities and learning experiences,” VanDamme said. “We played very demanding golf courses, and it exposed some things, which is great because now we know exactly what we need to practice.” 

The Flashes’ spring season will begin Feb. 2 at the Puerto Rico Classic. VanDamme said he’s looking forward to the team “going to work” in the offseason in preparation for the spring. 

“We’ve been playing so much in tournaments that we haven’t been able to train the way we’d like to, especially with our younger players,” VanDamme said. “Now, we’ll go into the development phase of our program, which we think we’re good at and helps our players get better.” 

John Engoglia is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].