The Vanderbilt Women’s Golf team began its spring season by competing in the FAU Paradise Invitational from Feb. 5-6 at Osprey Point Golf Club in Boca Raton, Fla. The Commodores finished third in the tournament with a score of +1 over three rounds, losing to South Florida and Denver. Lynn Lim and Tillie Claggett secured top-five finishes to lead the Commodores.
Virginie Ding, Celina Sattelkau, Sara Im, Claggett and Lim started the tournament for Vanderbilt while Macie Brown and Ava Merrill competed as individuals.
On Day One, each team played 36 holes to begin the tournament. The Commodores finished the day in fourth place, after strong performances from Lim and Claggett.
In round one, Lim was able to shoot a 1-under 71 to start things off. She made four birdies on the back nine after making three bogeys on the front nine. In round two, Lim shot up the leaderboard after shooting a 3-under 69 to vault herself into a tie for fourth place after 36 holes.
“It’s nice to see Lynn near the top of the leaderboard again,” head coach Greg Allen said after Day One. “She’s so close to posting really low scores for us.”
Ding also got off to a hot start in round one, cashing in three consecutive birdies to start her round. An unfortunate double bogey on the par-5 fifth hole and a string of 13 consecutive pars meant she would finish round one with a 1-under 71. A second round of 74 pushed her into a tie for 24th.
Claggett bounced back from a round of 74 in round one with a 2-under 70 in round two. Two costly double bogeys on the day prevented her from scoring under-par. Claggett still finished the day in a tie for 21st, well within striking distance of the leaders.
Sattelkau and Im rounded out the Commodores’ team score, finishing at +3 and +5, respectively.
“I thought we played like a team that hasn’t competed since late October,” Allen said after Day One. “We were very rusty and not very sharp around the greens.”
With high winds on Day Two, Vanderbilt needed to start hot and make a jump up the leaderboard.
Claggett set the tone for the day, firing a 3-under 69 to jump up the individual leaderboard and knock some strokes off the team total. Her round featured four birdies and one bogey as she finished the tournament in fifth place.
Lim had another solid day on the course, shooting 72 to finish the tournament in a tie for second. It was the sophomore’s first top-five finish of the season.
“I’m really proud of Lynn and [I am] impressed with how she continues to be there for us every time we play,” Allen said. “She went from almost not making our lineup this week to having a chance at winning if she makes another couple of putts.”
Ding fired a round of 75 in the final 18 holes to finish in a tie for 23rd. Sattelkau was able to shoot 74 to finish in a tie for 26th.
Im struggled on Day Two, firing a 79 to finish the tournament in a tie for 54th.
Merrill was also a bright spot on the individual leaderboard, shooting 71 to end the tournament in a tie for sixth. Her outstanding performance over the week led to her earning SEC co-Freshman of the Week honors. Unfortunately for Vanderbilt, she was competing as an individual so her rounds were not counted towards the overall team score.
“I think we’re all a little disappointed by not winning this, but I’m definitely not discouraged,” Allen said. “We showed a lot of fight today in some very tough conditions.”
The Commodores have a lot to take away from their first tournament this spring. The younger players on this roster stepped up and posted low numbers which will be the key to making a deep postseason push.
“We know what we need to work on over the next 10 days before we play again,” Allen said. “I really like this team and feel like when we get it going, we can be really, really good.”
Vanderbilt will be back in action at the Moon Golf Invitational in Melbourne, Fla. from Feb. 18-20.
