Women claim OVC title

    Golfing three strong rounds at the Crooked Creek Golf Course in London, Ky., the Murray State women’s golf team won the program’s seventh Ohio Valley Conference championship, its first conference title since 2004.
    “This was truly a team championship, you can tell by the finishes,” Head Coach Velvet Milkman said. “And that’s what it takes to win: everybody playing steady golf. And eventhough we didn’t have a winner of the tournament, it takes five strong preformances to win.”
    The women jumped out to an early lead in Friday’s first round of the Ohio Valley Conference tournament with a team score of 312. They continued to set an unbeatable mark for the remainder of the tournament.
    Battling strong winds in the final two rounds, the Racers were able to mark scores of 319 and 321 in rounds two and three, respectively, for a tournament total of 952 strokes. This earned them an automatic OVC bid to compete in the central region of the NCAA tournament May 7-9 in Columbus, Ohio. 
    Ohio State University will host the meet to take place at the Scarlet Golf Course.
    “This is the first team in Murray State’s history to go to the NCAA women’s golf tournament by an automatic bid,” Milkman said. “This team is making history. Nothing can take that away. If they finish in top eight in the regional match, they’ll get to go to the national championship.”
    With each member of the team finishing among the top 15 in competition, the Racers were able to gain and keep control over their OVC opponents.
    Junior Andrea Downer finished at No. 5 for Murray State, earning her OVC All-Tournament honors. Downer shot rounds of 79-81-77 for a total of 237.
    “I played my best golf on the last day which felt good,” Downer said. “I felt like I could contribute to the team on the last day. It felt great to finish in the top five. This was a great way to finish off the regular season.”
    With rounds of 78-79-91 and 76-82-81, respectively, senior Bethany Yates took the No. 8 spot with a total of 238 while junior Joyce Trus finished at No. 9 with a total of 239.
    Freshman Morgan Cross wrapped things up for the Racers with a total score of 242 strokes after rounds of 79-80-83.
    “We’ve got a lot of stuff going on with finals and having to leave early,” Downer said. “We’re going to practice hard. Our short game is the key to winning at the next level. We’re getting our games in shape and hopefully do well in regionals. I’m very proud of my teammates, of what we’ve achieved and we’ll do our best.”
    Elizabeth Johnson can be reached at
elizabetha.johnson@murraystate.edu.