The Valparaiso University women’s golf team teed off the 2019-20 season on Monday with 36 holes of action at the Loyola Fall Invitational at Flossmoor Country Club in Flossmoor, Ill. Valpo enters the tournament’s final day in sixth in the team standings with Kayla Krueger (Spring Lake, Mich. / Spring Lake) off to a strong start to her senior season to lead the way.

How It Happened

• Krueger carded a 151 (+5) over the first two rounds of the event, placing her just five strokes off the lead, which is owned by Creighton’s Katie Allen (E). Krueger is one stroke behind a South Dakota player for second and tied with another Coyote for third.
• Also enjoying a positive start to her senior season was Tiffany Curtis (Crown Point, Ind. / Crown Point), who posted a 78 in Round 1 and a 76 in Round 2. Her 36-hole score of 154 puts her tied for seventh of 53 with 18 holes to play.
• Sophomore Payton Hodson (Middleton, Wis. / Middleton) is third on the team with a 166, while freshmen Maddison Murphy (Bloomington, Ill. / University) and Cailey Rooker (St. Joseph, Mich. / St. Joseph) held spots in the starting five for their first collegiate tournament.
• Valpo turned in a 322 over the first 18 holes before cutting that total to 315 in the afternoon round. The 36-hole aggregate of 637 put the team ahead of Omaha (664), Fairfield (668) and Chicago State (708) and only one stroke in back of the host Ramblers, who sit in fifth.

Inside the Rounds

• The second round of Monday’s action allowed Valpo to tie for ninth in program history in 18-hole round in relation to par at +23, marking the team’s best score in relation to par since April 2, 2017 (Fort Wayne Classic, +22).
• Krueger showed immediate improvement with two rounds of 76 or better on the first day of the season. She obtained a 76 once in 2018-19. The Valpo senior equaled a career low with her 75 in Round 2, a personal best that was previously set in Round 1 of the 2018 MVC Championship.
• With her 76, Curtis matched a career mark that she set as a freshman at the 2017 Horizon League Championship and equaled last season at the Golfweek Program Challenge.  

Thoughts from Head Coach Jill McCoy

“Both seniors played great today. There were consistent and steady all day long. Hopefully our underclassmen can make some improvements tomorrow and we can improve on what was already a good start to the season.”  

Up Next

The final round of the Loyola Fall Invitational will begin with a 9 a.m. shotgun start on Tuesday. Live scoring is available via GolfStat.