Allendesalazar Finishes Top 10; CMU Women's Golf 6th in Spring Opener

LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla. – Casilda Allendesalazar shot a 1-under par 71 on Tuesday to finish with an even-par 216 total and in 10^th place in leading the Central Michigan women's golf team at the Bowling Green Falcon Florida Classic at Lakewood Ranch Golf and Country Club.

The Chippewas closed with a 294 team score, their best of the 54-hole, three-round tournament, and they finished sixth in the 12-team field that included nine Mid-American Conference squads.

CMU totaled 889 – the second-best score in program history – and finished six shots back of fifth-place Western Michigan.

"At the beginning of the season I talked about trending toward the end of the year and growing all season long, learning from our experiences, and understanding we're going to have some ups and downs," CMU coach Ryan Williams said. "If this is where we're starting, I think we're in a really good spot.

"The team wasn't totally satisfied with our performance this week and it's a good thing to have that feeling. We're posting really good numbers, but we know we're capable of more and we're hungry to continue to grow and get better."

Allendesalazar, a sophomore, opened the tournament with a program-record 4-under 68 on Monday. Her 54-hole 216 is the second best in program history behind Bria Colosky's 215 at the Mid-American Conference Fall Preview in October, 2018.

"That's a top-10 finish in a really solid field," Williams said. "There's some really good teams and solid programs that were here this week; some very good players and she made herself part of that company."

Allendesalazar made 11 birdies over her 54 holes, tying for the fourth in the field. Perhaps even more encouraging, she made just one double bogey over the two days.

"She showed off the skill set that she has and continued to build on her resumé and impress us," Williams said. "She had two really, really good rounds (in the tournament) and when she has the chance to put three really good rounds together, it's going to be something special. And she knows she can do that."

Allendesalazar finished 10 shots behind tournament medalist Sydney Naro of Northern Illinois. Naro finished at 10-under, four shots ahead of teammate Jasmine Ly in the 69-player field.

NIU closed with a final-round 286 to finish at 14-under 850. The Huskies won by 10 shots over runner-up Idaho. Toledo (867) was third.

The Chippewas finished ahead of five MAC schools.

CMU's Ashley Goh finished strong with an even-par 72 for a 222 total and a tie for 19^th, while teammate Padgett Chitty finished tied for 22^nd with a 223 after a final-round 76.

"She struggled with the putter in the first round," Williams said of Goh, who opened 77-73 and moved up 13 spots with her third-round 72. "First round of the season, first time on grass in a while, and that's kind of what got her.

"Without that she would have been right there. The way she trended this week is a really good sign. I see her trending that way because of her skill set, because of her mental game, and because of her demeanor and her attitude."

Goh led the Chippewas with 37 pars, while Chitty had 36.

"She was very consistent and steady," Williams said of Chitty. "She quietly shoots really good numbers for the team and is putting herself in the conversation with the top players."

Kauflin, as she has done throughout her Chippewa career, was steady and consistent, recording 36 pars and tying with Chitty for 12^th in the field.

"That's what she does best," Williams said. "If she had gotten a few more putts to fall she would have had a couple of really low numbers. She's really steady and we can count on her doing what she does and doing everything she can to help the team."

The Chippewas return to competition Feb. 24-26 at the Rio Verde Invitational at Rio Verde Country Club in Rio Verde, Ariz.

While they certainly can improve on their performance – and that's always the goal, Williams said – they take away a good dose of confidence from the Falcon Florida Classic.

They made 30 birdies against just six double bogeys, just one of which came in Tuesday's final round.

"Not having those big numbers just shows that they are comfortable in taking what they get and not trying to make miracles happen," Williams said. "They believe in themselves and they're continuing to have more and more confidence.

"Learning those lessons and continuing to figure those things out will be huge for them and it's going to help them get better and continue to post low numbers."

Allendesalazar Finishes Top 10; CMU Women's Golf 6th in Spring Opener

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Players Mentioned

Casilda Allendesalazar

Padgett Chitty

Ashley Goh