Flashes open up nine-shot lead after round one of MAC Championships

Allen Moff, Record-Courier
·2 min read
Emily Price of Kent State is in second place individually after shooting a 2-under 70 in the first round of the MAC Championships on Friday.
Emily Price of Kent State is in second place individually after shooting a 2-under 70 in the first round of the MAC Championships on Friday.

The 22-time defending champion Kent State women’s golf team built a nine-shot lead after round one of the 2022 Mid-American Conference Championships by firing an 8-over par 296 on Friday at Stone Oak Country Club in Holland, Ohio.

Four Golden Flashes are ranked among the top 10 individually after the first round led by senior Emily Price, who rests in second place at 2-under par. Price birdied the last two holes to finish off a 70 that featured five birdies overall.

Fellow senior Chloe Salort rests in fourth place at 1-over. She parred the last eight holes to shoot 73.

Price and Salort finished two-three at last year’s MAC Championships.

“Emily and Chloe played really well, held us in there like we hoped they would,” said first-year KSU head coach Casey VanDamme. “Emily hit it great, but got above some holes and had some three putts that hurt her a little bit. But closing out with birdies on the last two holes was a great thing for us. We needed that.”

Freshman Jennifer Gu is tied for sixth after shooting 4-over 76, while junior Noramol Nuchsila shot 5-over 77 and is tied for 10th.

“Jennifer Gu stepped up and birdied her last hole,” said VanDamme. “The course is in really good shape, but the wind was tricky today and the greens were fast. She did a good job.”

The Flashes lead Northern Illinois by nine shots, while third-place Toledo is another 10 shots back. Jasmine Ly of the Huskies shot the low score of the day, a 3-under 69.

“We definitely left a lot of shots out there. We know we can clean it up and play better than we did,” said VanDamme. “But so far, so good. This is where we want to be.”

Round two is set for Saturday, with Kent State teeing off at 11:30 a.m. The final round will be held on Sunday.

2022 MAC Championships

(At Stone Oak Country Club in Holland, Ohio. Par 72)

Team scores after first of three rounds: 1. Kent State +8, 2. Northern Illinois +17, 3. Toledo +27, 4. Akron +28, 5. Central Michigan +29, 6. Bowling Green, Ball State +31, 8. Eastern Michigan +42, 9. Western Michigan +44, 10. Ohio +51.

Kent State: 2. Emily Price 70, 4. Chloe Salort 73, T6. Jennifer Gu 76, T10. Noramol Nuchsila 77, T22. Mayka Hoogeboom 81.

This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Kent State leads by nine at the 2022 MAC Championships