No. 15 Vanderbilt Women’s Golf looked to bounce back from disappointing finishes at the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate and the Yale Invitational West at the Charles Schwab Women’s Collegiate, a two-day, three-round tournament held March 24–25 at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas. Facing a highly competitive field that included No. 1 Stanford and No. 3 Oregon, the Commodores started slowly and struggled to recover, ultimately finishing 11th.
Tillie Claggett, Angelina Tolentino, Ava Merrill, Lynn Lim and Sara Im completed Vanderbilt’s lineup for the tournament. The legendary Colonial Country Club, a past host of major championships, measured just under 6,100 yards at par 70.
Through 36 holes on Day One, Vanderbilt started ice cold, posting the worst score through 18 holes and becoming one of only two teams without a player shooting par or better in the opening round. The Commodores rebounded slightly in the second round, however, shooting 7-over 77 to climb from 15th to 12th place and finishing the day at 21-over. Individual performances improved in the later rounds, as junior Tillie Claggett fired a 3-under 67 round, tying for the lowest score. Meanwhile, sophomore Ava Merrill carded a 1-under 69, moving her into a tie for 15th on the day.
Vanderbilt’s play remained inconsistent on the final 18 holes, particularly on the front nine, where bogeys and double bogeys were common. However, the team rebounded on the back nine, with three of five players shooting par or better. Ava Merrill finished the round at 2-over, moving into a tie for 14th in individual play for the tournament. Head coach Greg Allen expressed his disappointment with the team’s finish.
“We got off to a good start and made some clutch putts, but unfortunately we made some mistakes down the stretch that cost us a better finish,” Allen said. “Some of that is bad breaks and some of that is golf swing-related. Regardless of what caused it, we need to make sure we learn and grow from it so we can stop doing it.”
With three underwhelming starts in a row, Vanderbilt must capitalize on its next tournament to build momentum for the SEC Championship in three weeks. Par-three scores remain a key area for improvement, as struggles on shorter holes have been a recurring issue this season. Cleaning up those mistakes will be the difference between mid-pack finishes like this and a spot on the podium.
The Black and Gold will return to action on April 7 in Knoxville, where they will face in-state rival Tennessee in a one-day, two-round tournament.
