Henry Schneiderman
Sports Editor
This past weekend marked an incredible milestone for the Fighting Scots. The women’s golf team delivered the most consistent performance in program history at the Marietta College Pioneer Classic tournament. The team managed an impressive score of 632 — the best 36 hole score in the group’s star-studded history — a tally that granted Wooster a hard fought second-place finish in the five team competition. This accolade serves as the newest addition to the Scots’ impressive spring season, one that saw the team place first and second in their previous two competitions — the Mount Union Spring Invitational and the Polar Beaver Classic. Wooster’s success also comes off the back of a record breaking fall season that saw the team record an unprecedented four first-place tournament finishes.
Melissa Burtscher ’24 led the Scots with a commanding score of 156, a tally that placed her third in the tournament’s individual performances and tied her for the fifth best 36 hole score in the program’s history. Burtscher achieved this score through an impressively consistent performance that saw the senior amass a hefty collection of birdies on Saturday. This trend continued into the competition’s second day as Burtscher played 12 of the 36 hole course at par or better – going one under par at the end of the period. Burtscher attributed the team’s camaraderie as a personal, and team wide motivator,
“We always wave or say hello when we see each other on the course,” Burtscher said. “For me, seeing a teammate helps keep everything in perspective and reminds me that I’m playing both for myself and the team. After the first day, we told each other that we knew we all could play even better the next day and that is exactly what we did.”
This effort was not isolated to a single performance; a number of Scots put forth standout performances that contributed to their second place finish. Grace Lindgren ’24 recorded 79s on both days to amass a final score of 158, matching her collegiate best 36 hole tally. Lindgren accomplished this score through a stirring effort in which she tallied a total of five birdies on the scorecard — three on Saturday and two on Sunday. Following Lindgren, Ally Siewart ’25 rounded out Wooster’s top five with a strong 159 – a score achieved through a series of eleven holes played at par or better on Sunday that netted her a solid 78. Abby Haywood ’27 opened the tournament on Saturday with three birdies that landed her a collegiate best of 78 before then amassing a powerful 82 on Sunday that netted her a sixth place finish and a final tally of 160. Morgan Erdmann ’27 rounded out the Scot’s lineup with a mighty 162, making Wooster the only team that saw all lineup entries place within the tournament’s top eight. Liz Hohman ’27 competed as an individual and netted a 25th place finish with a respectable 200 points.
This weekend’s efforts mark another step in Wooster’s long line of success this season, keeping the team optimistic and determined. Erdmann exhibited confidence in the team’s near matchups. “This weekend we have our home tournament at Wooster Country Club! We will be facing some tough competition but our team is playing very consistently right now and we are all looking forward to dominating the field at our home course this Sunday and Monday.” This sentiment was echoed by Haywood, who predicted a streak of strong performances. “For the remainder of the season, I think good things will come for this team,” Haywood said. “We are all playing really well and if that continues, I see more records being broken as we finish up.” Furthermore, Burtscher highlighted the team’s dedication by stating that the only quench to their thirst for victory is to dominate at the upcoming conference championships. “We are grateful to have had so much success already this season, but we are not satisfied,” Burtscher said. “The ultimate goal is to win the conference championship in three weeks at Westfield. That is not an easy goal, but it is achievable as long as we keep practicing and putting out our best performances on tournament days.”
The Fighting Scots will seek to continue their conquest as they host the Wooster Spring Invitational this Sunday, April 21, and Monday, April 22. Go Scots!
