Central Michigan University Athletics
Sunday, April 21
Grove City, Ohio (Pinnacle Golf Club)
9:30 a.m.
Central Michigan University
at
Mid-American Conference Championship
CMU senior Ashley Goh tees off on Sunday in the first round of the MAC Championship at Pinnacle Golf Club in Grove City, Ohio. Goh shot a 2-over par 74 and is tied for fourth in the 50-player field.
Photo by: Andy Sneddon
Goh, Chippewas Tied for 4th After Day 1 at MAC Championship
4/21/2024 8:30:00 PM | Women's Golf
GROVE CITY, Ohio – One-third of the way in, and the Central Michigan women's golf team is in a very good position.
CMU's Ashley Goh is tied for fourth individually and the Chippewas are tied for fourth in the 10-team field after the first round of the Mid-American Conference Championship at Pinnacle Golf Club.
Goh, a senior who has twice finished in the top 10 in the MAC Championship, shot a 2-over par 74 on Sunday, leading the Chippewas to a 315 team total, a solid score for a team that came into the tournament seeded 10th.
Goh is three shots behind Kent State teammates Veronika Kendronova and Leon Takagi, both of whom shot 1-under 71. They were the lone two players in the 50-player field to come in under par on Sunday.
Kent State, which is ranked 65th nationally and has won every MAC title since the league instituted its championship tournament in 1999, shot 8-over 296 on Sunday and leads second-place Toledo by nine shots.
Northern Illinois (310) is third. The Chippewas are tied for fourth with Bowling Green, one shot ahead of sixth-place Akron and two in front of Ball State.
The second round is scheduled for Monday with the third and final round of the 54-hole event set for Tuesday.
"Definitely happy with where we stand," CMU coach Ryan Williams said. "We're happy with it and we learned some things (Sunday) and we know that we're able to play even better in the next couple days and that we have some good momentum going. We're ready to keep going."
Goh, who finished fourth last year at the MAC Championship after tying for ninth as a sophomore in 2022, led the way along with fellow senior Rachel Kauflin, who shot a solid 6-over 78 and is among a group tied for 14th.
Chippewa freshmen Rachel Niskanen and Lexi Schulman are tied for 26th and 38th, respectively. Niskanen shot 80 and Schulman posted an 83, scores that Williams will take considering that both are playing in the MAC Championship for the first time.
"It's a nervous start at the MAC tournament especially your first year, your freshman year," Williams said. "They got more and more comfortable as the day went on."
CMU senior Mackenzie Baustad is 42nd after posting an 84.
"The golf course is tough, and it's set up tough," Williams said. "The rough is long and thick and the course is set up long. It's a good test.
"Yesterday looking at the golf course in the practice round it seemed like it was going to be a test of will, a battle, and whomever could kind of grind it out and keep their attitude in a good spot and just maintain some optimism was going to be the team that plays well, and I think we're really capable of doing that.
"We're in a place where we are aware of what we can do and what we can take on. We're not trying to get too much out of it and we're playing smart."
Goh, who has shown throughout her career that she is certainly capable of playing alongside, and beating, the best in the league, turned at 1-under and then made three consecutive bogeys to fall back to 2-over.
She recovered to make one birdie and one bogey over her final six holes.
"She had that bogey stretch where she had a couple of three-putts at some tough pin locations," Williams said. "It didn't get her down and she bounced back and made a couple of really good pars and a nice birdie and some really good shots on tough holes on the incoming stretch and kept herself in position.
"She's resilient; she's going to stay right there and compete. That's the great thing about Ash, she's so smart and she can find the mistakes and make the corrections, find the shots, and I think she'll do that. She played so steady, and she was pretty unflappable out there."
Kauflin relied on her trademark grit and perseverance, Williams said, in getting to the barn at 6-over. She kept herself afloat with a pair of birdies, which helped offset three double bogeys.
"It was a tough round by her," he said. "It was everything that we needed from her. She stepped up when she needed to and just got as much out of it as she could.
"She had a few doubles out there and that's the type of course that it is. You're going to have bogeys and you might have a couple of big numbers, but you have to be able to stay patient and stay positive and be ready when the time comes when you get an opportunity, and that's exactly what she did.
"That played a big role for us -- the attitude, the mindset, for her and for everyone else out there."
Both Schulman and Niskanen put on a display of grit as well, both overcoming shaky starts, which is not unexpected for players testing the MAC Championship waters for the first time.
Schulman was 5-over after her first three holes, and Niskanen found herself 4-over through four.
Schulman played her final 15 holes in 6-over, and Niskanen recovered to make a team-high three birdies on the day. She finished with a double bogey on 18, the lone blemish on an otherwise solid final 14 holes.
"(Niskanen) made a little mistake on 18 and made a double which was a little bit disappointing, but I think she learned from it and she's ready to correct that (on Monday)," Williams said. "She's in a good position and she can play some good rounds over the next two days. She's certainly not afraid to make a birdie and that's huge.
"I think she'll continue to build on that and it just shows what she's capable of; she can strike when the iron's hot."
Schulman "held it together," Williams said. "She stayed tough, and she did exactly what we needed her to do. She did enough for us to count a score that put us in the position we're in right now and I think she should take a ton of confidence from that. That's huge for us."
CMU's Ashley Goh is tied for fourth individually and the Chippewas are tied for fourth in the 10-team field after the first round of the Mid-American Conference Championship at Pinnacle Golf Club.
Goh, a senior who has twice finished in the top 10 in the MAC Championship, shot a 2-over par 74 on Sunday, leading the Chippewas to a 315 team total, a solid score for a team that came into the tournament seeded 10th.
Goh is three shots behind Kent State teammates Veronika Kendronova and Leon Takagi, both of whom shot 1-under 71. They were the lone two players in the 50-player field to come in under par on Sunday.
Kent State, which is ranked 65th nationally and has won every MAC title since the league instituted its championship tournament in 1999, shot 8-over 296 on Sunday and leads second-place Toledo by nine shots.
Northern Illinois (310) is third. The Chippewas are tied for fourth with Bowling Green, one shot ahead of sixth-place Akron and two in front of Ball State.
The second round is scheduled for Monday with the third and final round of the 54-hole event set for Tuesday.
"Definitely happy with where we stand," CMU coach Ryan Williams said. "We're happy with it and we learned some things (Sunday) and we know that we're able to play even better in the next couple days and that we have some good momentum going. We're ready to keep going."
Goh, who finished fourth last year at the MAC Championship after tying for ninth as a sophomore in 2022, led the way along with fellow senior Rachel Kauflin, who shot a solid 6-over 78 and is among a group tied for 14th.
Chippewa freshmen Rachel Niskanen and Lexi Schulman are tied for 26th and 38th, respectively. Niskanen shot 80 and Schulman posted an 83, scores that Williams will take considering that both are playing in the MAC Championship for the first time.
"It's a nervous start at the MAC tournament especially your first year, your freshman year," Williams said. "They got more and more comfortable as the day went on."
CMU senior Mackenzie Baustad is 42nd after posting an 84.
"The golf course is tough, and it's set up tough," Williams said. "The rough is long and thick and the course is set up long. It's a good test.
"Yesterday looking at the golf course in the practice round it seemed like it was going to be a test of will, a battle, and whomever could kind of grind it out and keep their attitude in a good spot and just maintain some optimism was going to be the team that plays well, and I think we're really capable of doing that.
"We're in a place where we are aware of what we can do and what we can take on. We're not trying to get too much out of it and we're playing smart."
Goh, who has shown throughout her career that she is certainly capable of playing alongside, and beating, the best in the league, turned at 1-under and then made three consecutive bogeys to fall back to 2-over.
She recovered to make one birdie and one bogey over her final six holes.
"She had that bogey stretch where she had a couple of three-putts at some tough pin locations," Williams said. "It didn't get her down and she bounced back and made a couple of really good pars and a nice birdie and some really good shots on tough holes on the incoming stretch and kept herself in position.
"She's resilient; she's going to stay right there and compete. That's the great thing about Ash, she's so smart and she can find the mistakes and make the corrections, find the shots, and I think she'll do that. She played so steady, and she was pretty unflappable out there."
Kauflin relied on her trademark grit and perseverance, Williams said, in getting to the barn at 6-over. She kept herself afloat with a pair of birdies, which helped offset three double bogeys.
"It was a tough round by her," he said. "It was everything that we needed from her. She stepped up when she needed to and just got as much out of it as she could.
"She had a few doubles out there and that's the type of course that it is. You're going to have bogeys and you might have a couple of big numbers, but you have to be able to stay patient and stay positive and be ready when the time comes when you get an opportunity, and that's exactly what she did.
"That played a big role for us -- the attitude, the mindset, for her and for everyone else out there."
Both Schulman and Niskanen put on a display of grit as well, both overcoming shaky starts, which is not unexpected for players testing the MAC Championship waters for the first time.
Schulman was 5-over after her first three holes, and Niskanen found herself 4-over through four.
Schulman played her final 15 holes in 6-over, and Niskanen recovered to make a team-high three birdies on the day. She finished with a double bogey on 18, the lone blemish on an otherwise solid final 14 holes.
"(Niskanen) made a little mistake on 18 and made a double which was a little bit disappointing, but I think she learned from it and she's ready to correct that (on Monday)," Williams said. "She's in a good position and she can play some good rounds over the next two days. She's certainly not afraid to make a birdie and that's huge.
"I think she'll continue to build on that and it just shows what she's capable of; she can strike when the iron's hot."
Schulman "held it together," Williams said. "She stayed tough, and she did exactly what we needed her to do. She did enough for us to count a score that put us in the position we're in right now and I think she should take a ton of confidence from that. That's huge for us."
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
/ Women's Golf
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