UVA Takes 11-Shot Lead After First Round at ACCs

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April 15, 2016

Greensboro, N.C. – The No. 18 Virginia women’s golf team got the defense of its ACC title off to a solid start Friday by grabbing an 11-shot lead after the first round of this year’s tournament. The Cavaliers posted an opening-round score of 5-under 283 in Greensboro, N.C., while No. 3 Duke and No. 45 Wake Forest are tied for second at 6-over 284.

It marked the fourth consecutive round the Cavaliers have shot under part at Sedgefield Country Club, which serves as the host course for the PGA Tour’s Wyndham Championship. Virginia cruised to the team title last year by posting the lowest score in the tournament’s history, finishing at 27-under, 837. It was UVA’s first ACC crown in the sport.

Senior Lauren Coughlin (Chesapeake, Va.) led UVA Friday with an opening round score of 6-under 66 to share the lead in stroke play. It was one shot off her career best performance and marked the third consecutive round at Sedgefield she has shot under par. Her round featured eight birdies and two bogeys.

A year ago Coughlin placed fourth at the ACCs on her way to earning all-conference honors.

Junior Lauren Diaz-Yi (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) and freshman Anna Redding (Concord, N.C.) also posted first-rounds scores that placed them in the top-10 after 18 holes. Diaz-Yi shot 1-under 71 while Redding finished at even par 72. Diaz-Yi was exceptionally steady, carding 15 pars during her round.

Freshman Morgan Gonzales (Chandler, Ariz.) used on eagle on the par-5, 18th hole to finish her first ACC tournament round at 2-over 74 and is in 12th place. Senior Elizabeth Szokol (Winnetka, Ill.) shot 76 and is in 27th place.

Despite recording one less birdies (18) than Duke (19), the Cavaliers did a good job of staying out of trouble, recording just two double bogeys over 90 combined holes. UVA played the par five holes the best of any team in the field, finishing them at 9-under par.

In addition to playing for the ACC title, for the first time a point is at stake between UVA and Virginia Tech towards the Commonwealth Clash. This is the Hokies first time competing at the ACC Championships. They finished the day in 12th place at 32-over 320. UVA currently leads the Clash 9-5.

Saturday’s second round gets underway at 8 a.m. The Cavaliers are paired with Duke and Wake Forest. They will tee off starting at 10:30 a.m. Live scoring of the tournament is online at Golfstat.com. ESPN3 will broadcast the tournament starting at 2 p.m. ACC Championships
Sedgefield Country Club
Greensboro, N.C.
Par-72, 6,089 yards
Final Results

Team Results  1. Virginia        283 2. Duke            294 2. Wake Forest     294 4. NC State        297 5. North Carolina  298 5. Clemson         298 7. Florida State   299 8. Miami           301 9. Boston College  30410. Notre Dame      31011. Louisville      31112. Virginia Tech   320  Individual Leaders1. Lauren Coughlin, Virginia    661. Jennifer Kupcho, Wake Forest 663. Leona Maguire, Duke          70
Virginia Results 1. Lauren Coughlin      66 4. Lauren Diaz-Yi       71 7. Anna Redding         7212. Morgan Gonzales      7417. Elizabeth Szokol     76="http:>="http:>="http:>="http:>="http:>="http:>