The Golden Bears women’s golf team read the greens, drove the ball deep down the course, and were clutch in pressure situations. Still, this was not enough to win the Kutztown Fall Invitational as KU took second after Merrimack College. Junior Jackie Clifton had the best performance for KU, tying for third overall behind two Merrimack competitors and tying with another.
KU competed admirably this tournament. Out of the nine-team field, KU was the only team to give Merrimack a run for their money. Merrimack’s Jessica Negui finished with the best score in two rounds. Back-to-back scores of 79 over par were excellent on the par 74 course. Her 79 was the best score in a single round.
Despite shooting an 82 above par on the first day, Clifton matched the best score in a round on her second day of competition. She finished the competition with a total score of 161 for third place. Merrimack’s second place finisher ended the invitational with a total score of 160; Clifton was just one stroke behind second place and three behind first.
KU as a team finished second place. KU and Merrimack were the only two teams to have all of their individual golfers finish in the top-20. KU finished the entire Invitational with a grand total score of 667, Merrimack ended the weekend with a final score of 640. Though KU trailed Merrimack by 27 strokes, they led third place finisher West Chester University by 40 strokes at the end of the competition.
Aside from Clifton, sophomore Lauren Smith was superb on the Berkleigh Golf Club course. Placing just under Clifton in the standings, Smith ended up at fifth place overall. On the first day, Smith shot an impressive 82 and, in the second round, improved by one stroke with an 81. Smith’s 163 total was the second best score for the Golden Bears.
Sophomore Madison Houseal was the only other KU golfer to finish in the top-10. She completed the tournament tied for 10th place with a score of 168.
KU’s five golfer team was rounded up by senior Mindy Glatfelter and junior Devan Everett. Glatfelter clearly didn’t have the spark she had last season. Glatfelter end up winning the Kutztown Invitational last season with a single round score of 80. Unfortunately for her, she could not match her previous efforts, finishing the weekend 13th overall. Her score was 175 total strokes. Everett, on the other hand, had her best finish of the tournament at 20th place. Her final score of 184 helped her finish in the top half of the 44-golfer field.
With the Kutztown Fall Invitational behind them, the Golden Bears are looking forward to the future as they are set to compete in the season ending PSAC Championships. KU will need to be healthy and focused on October 19 as they travel to Hershey to end the season.

By Timothy Nichols