The spring season started for The University of Texas-Pan American women’s golf team at the Islander Classic hosted by the Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi last Sunday through Tuesday. The team finished 11th of 12 teams, but the result may not reflect what the tournament meant for the Lady Broncs.
“We went out there as a new team, I can say that these five have never played together,” head coach Ofelia Lopez said. “It’s a challenge having a new team, they’re still adjusting.”
Two of the players are new to the squad. Junior Melinda Uriegas came back after taking a semester off, while Sharyland High School graduate Ashley Estrada is fresh to the program. Junior Haley Hocott and sophomores Majo Camey and Sarah Kothny are the three returners as senior Rebecca de Leon awaits to get ankle surgery next week.
Lopez mentioned that although the team had bad punctuation in the first round with 345 hits, the team improved every time it stepped back on the green. Their shots dropped to 328 in the second day to then fell to 325 in the third. The tournament consisted of three rounds of 18 holes each. In golf, the person with the least number of strokes wins; every time a competitor hits the ball before making the hole is counted as a point and the addition of the total strokes throughout all the holes results in the score.
“It wasn’t the opening I was looking for, but it’s a wake-up call, we have a long way to go. As a coach I’m challenged, and I’m looking forward to playing these girls in and out,” Lopez said. “We’re starting at the lowest of the low; I think these girls will win confidence playing shot by shot and hole by hole, and not worrying about their abilities, because their ability is what brought them here.”
Hocott led the Broncs tied in 36th with 243 strokes (84-81-78). Tied in 42nd was Camey hitting 85, 80, 80 for a score of 245. Kothny placed 50th with 249. The newcomers Uriegas and Estrada finished tied in 63rd and 67th with 261 and 301 strokes, respectively.
“We were kind of rusty, but it was interesting,” Hocott said. “Now we’re moving in a positive direction, and from now on we hope to continue to improve.”
The University of Tulsa won the first place with a score of 924 while Amber Hensley from Oral Roberts University took the individual title, hitting 221.
One of the points of success this week, according to Lopez, is that the players stayed optimistic during hard times. This is one of the things that the coach stressed the most, knowing the iffy situation coming in. She hopes that this approach to the game carries over to the rest of the season as the team ultimately accomplished winning results.
“I asked them to… not get mad of themselves and have a good attitude, and they did that for three days,” she said.
For Hocott, staying positive is a crucial part of the game. For this reason, she said that motivating each member of the team was and will be one of the strengths of the Lady Broncs.
“That’s what golf is all about, is about how you have to keep a positive attitude,” she said. “The conditions were tough, but within the team we had to be positive and encourage each other.”
In 2009, the women concluded the spring season winning the Great West Conference Championship and the PGA Minority Collegiate Championship. Obtaining these titles again is the main objective that the team is looking to accomplish again in 2010.
“We’re on the road to defending not only one, but two championships,” Lopez said. “Everything we do is preparing ourselves for both conference and Minority.”
After breaking in the new team this week, the Lady Broncs return to action at the Texas State Invitational at Victoria, Texas, which will take place March 14.
Be the first to comment on this article!