Mercer Women’s Golf Ready for A-Sun Finale

- J. Andrew Lockwood -
Senior Editor of The Bear Zone/ Sports Columnist
james.andrew.lockwood@student.mercer.edu

In their final tune-up of the season, the Mercer women finished eighth at the Larry Nelson Collegiate.  Held on the Chateau Elan course, the Bears struggled throughout the tournament, but junior Monica Kelsey raised a few eyebrows with a 10^th place finish (+22).  The Orlando, Florida native was 5^th after two rounds, but a final round 82 (+10) dropped her a few spots in the standings as the field battled tough conditions on the final day.

Head Coach Gary Guyer changed the lineup a bit for the final spring tournament before the conference championship, adding Kayli Wicker and Kathryn Cook to the lineup for junior Carolyn Levy and the injured Leslie Choucard.  Guyer saw mixed results from his players during the two day tournament as freshmen Alicia Poole would finish 30^th (+33), Wicker 34^th (+37), Alex Quagliata 36^th (+39), and Cook 37^th (+40). 

Now, the Bears will have to rely on their experience as they face a tough field at the DeLand, Florida based Championships.  “We’re really looking forward to this tournament,” commented Guyer.  “This is our chance to show who we are to everyone else in the Atlantic Sun.  Everything we do all year long leads up to this tournament.  Our goal is to go to the NCAA Tournament by winning the automatic bid that comes with the A-Sun Championship,” Guyer added. 

Mercer, currently ranked #194 in the nation by Golfstat.com will face tough programs at the Easter-weekend tournament that include #45 ETSU, #61 Campbell, and #93 Stetson.  However, Guyer feels like his team and momentum going into the tournament and a slight ‘home’ advantage.  Despite not knowing who his 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th spots will be on the lineup card yet, the third year head coach is certain that whoever he takes will play their best golf of the season at the conference championship.

“We’re facing a tough field, but I feel like we’ve really prepared to face these teams at this particular golf course,” said Guyer.  He also added, “I’m really excited for Monica [Kelsey].  She’s been playing great golf and this is almost a home course for her.”  Indeed, the Bears will have an advantage over several teams after playing at the Hatter Invitational in November, held at the same course exact course the Bears will be playing at next weekend.

The season comes down to this tournament.  For a team without any seniors, the Bears will need to get leadership and low scores from their upperclassmen in order to compete.  But as we all know, in golf, anything can happen on any given weekend.  

Photo Courtesy of MercerBears.com