Indiana women’s golf concluded play at the Chattanooga Classic on Tuesday. The Hoosiers shot a collective 955, 91-over par to finish in 20th place in the event.
Indiana started slow on Sunday morning, shooting a collective 326, 38-over par after the first round. Freshman Aine Donegan led the Hoosiers with a 75, 3-over par on the first day. Senior Maddie Dittoe was the only other Hoosier to crack into the 70s in the first round, scoring a 79, 7-over par.
The Hoosiers saw more of the same Monday, replicating their score of 326, 38-over par. Donegan shot a 76, 4-over par and sophomore Morgan Dabagia scored a 80, 8-over par to pace the team in round two.
Indiana’s third round score was much-needed improvement on its previous two, but it was too late in hopes of mounting a comeback in the standings. The Hoosiers collectively scored a 303, 15-over par on the final day. Donegan led the way scoring a 72, even-par and freshman Beatriz Junqueira tied her season-high single round score of 73, 1-over par.
Indiana’s final score of 955, 91-over par led to a last-place finish. The Hoosiers finished 11 strokes behind 19th place Murray State University.
Senior Arushi Singh had to withdraw early for the Hoosiers in the first round and was unable to return for the rest of the competition. The reasoning behind her decision to withdraw is unknown, but any scores she had in the first round were not enough to qualify to be scored.
A lack of converting birdies was the primary reason Indiana struggled in the event. The Hoosiers knocked in 19 birdies overall, last in the field. Comparatively, the University of North Florida finished with a field-high 52 birdies and finished in second place.
Prior to this week, par 5s had been the most difficult hole for Indiana to succeed on, however, the team struggled most on par 3s in Chattanooga, Tennessee. The Hoosiers averaged a score of 3.60 and shot 36-over par on par 3s, coming in last place in the category. Comparatively, the Hoosiers finished in 14th and 13th in averages on par 4s and par 5s, respectively.
The Chattanooga Classic was the penultimate event of the regular season for Indiana. The Hoosiers will wrap up the regular season in Bloomington at the Pfau Course April 9-10.
