No. 10 Vanderbilt Women’s Golf returned to action at the Alice and John Wallace Classic in Palm Desert, California, from Feb. 14-16. The Commodores finished in fifth place among a field of 15 teams, led by top 20 individual finishes from Elizabeth Rudisill and Tillie Claggett. The field contained only four ranked teams and only one top-10 team in the country, the University of Southern California, according to the Clippd rankings.
The 54-hole tournament was conducted over three days at the par-71 Monterrey Country Club. Head coach Greg Allen opted to start Rudisill, Claggett, Lynn Lim, Ava Merrill and Angelina Tolentino in this event, while Kathryn Ha competed as an independent, meaning her scores did not count toward the team’s total.
The Commodores sat in fifth place after 18 holes, shooting a cumulative 10-over 294. Merrill led the ’Dores with a 1-over 72, while Rudisill, Claggett and Lim all finished with rounds of 3-over 74.
Allen touched on how he felt his team approached the day after the round.
“I think today was a really good learning day for us,” Allen said. “I think we didn’t give this golf course enough respect. After the practice round yesterday, I think our expectations went up thinking this place was going to be a cupcake.”
Day 2 brought better scores for the Commodores, though, as they rose up one spot on the team leaderboard into fourth place after the second round. A cumulative round of 3-over 287 put the Commodores in contention for a top three finish.
Rudisill was undoubtedly the story of the day, as the freshman managed to hole six birdies en route to a 2-under 69. The North Carolina native vaulted herself into the top 10 on the individual leaderboard as she looked to secure her second top-15 finish this spring.
Tolentino shot 72, while Merrill and Lim both carded a round of 73, rounding out the Commodores’ counting scores for the day.
“Today was a better day, and I’m proud of the fight we showed,” Allen said after Day 2.
Despite the improved performance in the second round, Vanderbilt failed to carry the momentum into the third round. A cumulative final round of 11-over 295 — the team’s worst round of the week — pushed the Commodores back into fifth place.
Claggett managed to find red figures with a 1-under 70, which included five birdies on the front nine. This stellar final round pushed the senior into a tie for 14th individually, her second top-15 finish in the spring season. Lim, Tolentino and Merrill carded rounds of 74, 75 and 76, respectively, each placing within the top 30 individually.
Rudisill’s score did not count toward the team total in the final round, but a score of 77 on her last 18 holes pushed her down the leaderboard into a tie for 18th.
“The struggle was real today, but we never gave up,” Allen said at the conclusion of the event. “After getting off to a good start, it’s almost like we forgot how to play golf for a few holes. But I’m proud of how we continued to fight through the struggle.”
Vanderbilt returns to action at the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate from March 2-4 in Hilton Head, South Carolina.
