WEST POINT – On Tuesday, Mississippi State’s nationally ranked women’s golf team turned its Old Waverly Invitational into a runaway, firing a team score of 277 to stretch its lead to 22 strokes over a field of 13 teams.
On Wednesday, the Lady Bulldogs kept running, right to a second consecutive tournament championship. Behind overall winner Ally McDonald, who fired a one-under round of 71 to earn the individual title, MSU’s No. 2 ranked Lady Bulldogs posted a team score of 296, enough to secure an easy 24-stroke victory.
“We didn’t play as well as we’d like, but that’s why it’s a three-day event,” said MSU coach Ginger Lemm-Brown. “The conditions weren’t perfect today, but that’s golf. We can’t control that.
“I think we have a national-championship-caliber team, and I expected us to play a little better.”
MSU’s total of 296 was still the second-lowest on a windy, cool morning that provided golfers with a tougher challenge than the tournament’s previous two days. Of the 13 teams participating, only one, Troy, improved its score from Day 2 to Day 3 . Only four teams – MSU, Houston, South Florida and Troy – broke 300 on the final day of competition.
For McDonald, a senior from Fulton, the conditions were tough. But not tough enough to prevent her from winning the individual championship.
“It was a bit of a struggle for me today, I’m sure everyone else would probably say the same thing,” said McDonald. “It was a completely different golf course than the first two days. It was chilly out here first thing in the morning, and the win was pretty brutal It tested us.”
If McDonald struggled, she didn’t show it. The Fulton native carded a one-under round of 71 to close out the win. Over the three-day event, McDonald finished nine under par and earned a six-shot victory over second-place finisher Ashley Burke of South Florida.
“We didn’t expect anything less from her,” said Lemm-Brown of McDonald. “She’s a character-filled and talented player. We are blessed to have her leading our program.”
Individually, MSU’s Chieh Jessica Peng finished tied for fourth, finishing the tournament at 1-over despite a final round score of 78. MSU teammates Logan Chaney and Ji Eun Baik tied for 11th with three-day totals of 220, each four over par.
In the team standings, South Florida finished second with a cumulative score of 882, and Houston was third with a team total of 885.
For McDonald, the chance to play and win a tournament on what is now MSU’s home course, Old Waverly Golf Club, was special.
“I’d say there was a little bit of internal pressure that we put on ourselves because of how well we know this course,” said McDonald. “We expect to play well here and it is an advantage to us. But at the same time, you never really get fully comfortable with a golf course because conditions like today can change everything.”
Lemm-Brown agreed, and she praised her team for its resiliency of fighting through a tough final day.
“We didn’t handle it as efficiently as we should have, especially early,” said Lemm-Brown. “But we battled our way through it.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
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