The Valparaiso University women’s golf team began the penultimate event of the fall season on Monday, golfing 18 holes to open up the Dayton Fall Invitational at NCR Country Club in Kettering, Ohio. The team finds itself involved in a tight middle of the pack in the standings entering Tuesday’s second round.  

How It Happened

• Senior Kayla Krueger (Spring Lake, Mich. / Spring Lake) posted Valpo’s low score for the day by carding a 77 (+7). She is tied for 17^th in the 85-player field.
• Sophomore Payton Hodson (Middleton, Wis. / Middleton) and senior Tiffany Curtis (Crown Point, Ind. / Crown Point) also turned in sub-80 opening rounds by posting 79s. They are part of a tie for 30^th.
• The team score of 320 (+40) is ninth of 14 competitors through one day of action. Valpo holds a one-stroke lead on Detroit Mercy and a two-stroke edge on Ohio in a tight mid-pack grouping. The Brown & Gold enter the final 18 holes just one stroke behind Tennessee Tech and two in back of seventh-place Northern Kentucky.

Inside the Round

• Valpo had a pair of birdies over the round, one apiece by Krueger and Cailey Rooker (St. Joseph, Mich. / St. Joseph).
• The team’s top showing came on Par 3 holes (3.65, t-7^th), with Krueger finishing as one of 10 players in the field to average par or better on Par 3s.
• Krueger had her sixth round of 77 or better this season.
• Hodson enjoyed her third sub-80 round, while Curtis carded her sixth.

Thoughts from Head Coach Jill McCoy

“Kayla had our low round today, but felt she left a lot of room for improvement tomorrow. Tiffany and Payton both played very solid golf today. I’m looking forward to making up some of the ground we lost in tomorrow’s round. I think everyone has a good feel for where they can improve and we are all anxious to get back out there.”

Up Next

Tee times will begin at 9:30 a.m. CT on Tuesday as the teams compete in the second and final round of the event in Kettering. A link to live scoring via BirdieFire is available on ValpoAthletics.com.