For the second straight day, the Valparaiso University women’s golf team enjoyed its best round of the spring on Thursday at Windsor Parke in Jacksonville, Fla. as part of the Bulldog Florida Invitational. The Crusaders trimmed seven strokes off their Round 1 score by turning in a 323 in Round 2.

How It Happened

• The Crusaders finished in sixth of nine teams with a 36-hole score of 653 (+77).
• Katie Willenbrink (Mishawaka, Ind. / Penn) had a strong day, trimming six strokes off her first round score to post a 77 on Thursday. She finished at 160 (+16), which put her in a tie for 21^st to lead the Crusaders.
• After pacing her team on Day 1, freshman Tiffany Curtis (Crown Point, Ind. / Crown Point) showed additional improvement on the second day of competition. She turned in an 80 on Thursday to finish at 160 (+16), tied for 19^th.
• Senior Angie Kim (Schaumberg, Ill. / Fremd) also improved on Thursday, as she followed her 82 from Round 1 with an 81. Her total score of 163 (+19) tied for 23^rd in the meet.
• Madison McCreary (Batesville, Ind. / Batesville) turned in an 85 on Thursday to finish the meet at 168 (+24), tied for 31^st.
• Golfing as an individual, freshman Kayla Krueger (Spring Lake, Mich. / Spring Lake) stroked an 85 to finish at 169 (+25), tied for 36^th.
• Kylie Shoemake (Schererville, Ind. / Lake Central) matched her Day 1 score with another 86, placing her in a tie for 40^th at +28.
• Senior Sydney Shrum (Cloverdale, Ind. / Cloverdale) made a 13-stroke improvement from Round 1 with an 84 in Round 2. Kiana Jongsma (Dyer, Ind. / Lake Central) posted a 96 on Thursday to finish at 183.

Inside the Round

• Shrum’s 13-stroke improvement from Round 1 to Round 2 was the second largest in the 53-player field. The only golfer with a greater improvement was Hillary Reader of Lipscomb, who had an 88 in Round 1 and a 74 in Round 2.
• Stetson won the event by posting a 36-hole score of 616 (+40), while High Point came in second at 630.
• The Crusaders finished two strokes behind fifth-place Lipscomb and five strokes ahead of seventh-place Evansville.

Thoughts from Head Coach Jon Haas

“This was an incredibly rewarding day to be on the course with these girls. They battled for two straight days. Today’s 323 was a significant step in the right direction as our conference tournament creeps up on us.”

Up Next

The Crusaders will next compete on Sunday, April 2 as they begin the Fort Wayne Spring Classic at Pine Valley C.C. in Fort Wayne, Ind.