Alabama
Mason Rudolph Women's Championship
Alabama Captures Mason Rudolph Championship in Record-Setting Fashion
9/18/2016 5:15:00 PM | Women's Golf
FRANKLIN, Tenn. – The Alabama women's golf team fired a 25-under par 263 on the final day of the 2016 Mason Rudolph Championship to storm to a school- and tournament-record 39-under par (284-278-263/825) tournament victory at the par-72, 6,451-yard Vanderbilt Legends Club in Franklin, Tenn.
Leading the way for the Crimson Tide on Sunday was sophomore Cheyenne Knight, who set a new program low score with a 14-under par 202 (68-67-67) to break previous record of 13-under par (203) set by Kathleen Ekey at the 2008 Crimson Tide Classic.
Alabama set a number of other individual and team records during the three-day tournament. The team score and score vs. par surpass the previous records of 836 and 28-under par set at the 2010 Tar Heel Invitational. The final round 263 is an 11-shot improvement over the old program record of 274, which was also set at the 2010 Tar Heel Invitational. Saturday's round of 278 now ranks No. 7 all-time for the Tide.
Junior Lakareber Abe carded a school-record nine-under par 63 on the final day to surpass the old record by two shots. The third round performance pushed her into a tie for fourth in the final standings. Sophomore Lauren Stephenson fired a 65 on Sunday to equal the previous low-round record.
"The first two days I loved," head coach Mic Potter said. "Today, I can't even explain. It's unbelievable to watch what I was watching. I thought we played really well the first day. (Saturday) was a tough day. With the wet conditions, I worried a little bit about our carry distance."
Individually, Knight captured medalist honors with her performance. Stephenson (74-68-65/207) and freshman Kristen Gillman (71-68-68/207) tied for second at nine-under par. Abe (71-75-63/209) tied for fourth at seven-under par. Senior Mia Landegren tied for 24th (75-76-70/221) at five-over par.
"I thought they did a good job of not paying attention to what was going on around them, taking it one shot at a time and doing their job. I just hope we can take that forward and continue. I don't think a lot about (records) but I know one thing, they hung in there and kept their wits about them. It's really nice to see them get that deep under par and not back off but keep going forward."
Alabama has now won back-to-back titles at the Mason Rudolph. The Tide won last year's tournament with a 16-under par performance (282-280-286/848). Lakareber Abe was the individual medalist a year ago, with a 12 under par 204 (67-68-69).
The Crimson Tide returns to action next weekend at the University of Oklahoma's Schooner Fall Classic Sept. 24-26 in Norman, Okla.
2016 Mason Rudolph Championship
Vanderbilt Legends Club
Alabama Final Results
1. Cheyenne Knight, 68-67-67/202 (-14)
2t. Lauren Stephenson, 74-68-65/207 (-9)
2t. Kristen Gillman, 71-68-68/207 (-9)
4t. Lakareber Abe, 71-75-63/209 (-7)
24t. Mia Landegren, 75-76-70/221 (+5)
Team Standings (Top 5)
1. Alabama, 284-278-263/825 (-39)
2. SMU, 288-293-287/868 (+4)
3. Northwestern, 284-296-291/871 (+7)
4. UCF, 291-293-292/876 (+12)
5t. Chattanooga, 292-295-292/879 (+15)
5t. Auburn, 289-298-292/879 (+15)
Alabama Superlatives
Team Records Set
54-Hole Score: 825
54-Hole vs. Par: -39
Single-Round Score: 263 (third round)
Single-Round vs. Par: -25 (third round)
Individual Records Set
54-Hole Score: 202, Cheyenne Knight
54-Hole vs. Par: -13, Cheyenne Knight
Single-Round Score: 63, Lakareber Abe (third round)
Single-Round vs. Par: -9, Lakareber Abe (third round)
Personal Bests
Single Round Score: 63 (third round)
Single Round vs. Par: -9 (third round)
Low 54: 207 (71-68-68)
Low 54 vs. Par: -9
Single Round Score: 68 (second & third rounds)
Single Round vs. Par: -4 (second & third rounds)
Low 54: 202 (68-67-67)
Low 54 vs. Par: -14
Low 18: 67 (second & third rounds)*
Low 18 vs. Par: -5 (second & third rounds)*
Low 54: 221 (75-76-70)*
Low 54 vs. Par: +5*
Single Round Score: 70 (third round)
Single Round vs. Par: -2 (third round)
Low 54: 209 (74-68-65)
Low 54 vs. Par: -9
Single Round Score: 65
Single Round vs. Par: -7
*-equaled previous best
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Players Mentioned
