Women’s Golf Sweeps Honors at Jack Leaman Invitational

The Amherst women’s golf team put on a dominant performance at the 2018 Jack Leaman Invitational this past weekend, placing first in the seven-team field. The victory is the team’s first of the spring season and bests the prior weekend’s sixth-place finish.

The Mammoths hosted the two-day event, with both days featuring beautiful spring weather. The first round of competition was held at the par-72, 5,806-yard Amherst Golf Club, and second round action was held at the par-74, 5,895-yard Hickory Ridge Golf Course in Amherst.

In the team competition, Amherst held on to its day one lead, finishing with a two-day total of 634 strokes, while New York University (NYU) (637) placed a close second and archrival Williams (641) took third.

First-year Isabelle Ouyang (74-80-154) outpaced the entire field, claiming the first individual crown of the spring season for the Mammoths. Zoe Wong ’18 (78-80-158) finished four shots back from Ouyang to claim a share of second place, tying with Navika Kuchakulla (80-78-158) of NYU and Cordella Chan (80-78-158) of Williams. Additionally, all five of Amherst’s competitors placed in the top-25 for the second time this spring.

The Mammoths were consistent all weekend, grabbing the lead after round one with a team score of 316. Last week’s Vassar Invitational winner, NYU, trailed the Mammoths by four strokes. NESCAC rivals Williams (323) and Middlebury (334) were not far off the pace, in third and fourth place, respectively. NYU, Williams and Middlebury all dropped shots off of their team totals in round two, putting pressure on Amherst to maintain its lead.

Amherst relied on a second-round team-low score of 78 by Morgan Yurosek ’20 (84-78-162) to finish with a day two score of 318, three shots ahead of the competition.

Amherst also received solid performances from Emily Young ’20 (83-80-163) and Kate Weiss ’19 (81-86-167). Young dropped three shots off of her first-round score to move from 17th to 12th, while Weiss finished four shots behind her teammate to secure a share of 22nd.

Entering the invitational as individuals, Lily Worden ’21 (86-81-167) and Jessica Jeong ’20 (86-82-168) posted lower Sunday scores to claim 22nd and 27th, respectively .

Amherst looks to continue building momentum and follow up on its first-place performance next weekend at the 2018 Williams Invitational. In last year’s contest, the Mammoths held off both the hosts and Middlebury to claim first place. This final regular season tournament will be held on April 28-29 in Williamstown, Massachusetts.