Trojans' DeLong sits in 19th place after day 1 at nationals
- DeLong is one shot out of 13th place
- Trojans sit in 11th place after day 1
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - NIACC sophomore Meghan DeLong is in a tie for 19th place after the first day at the NJCAA Division II National Championship Tuesday at the Ol' Colony Golf Course.
DeLong, who prepped at Clear Lake, shot an opening round of 83 and is in a tied for 19th along with Shelton State's Sawyer Hobbs and Riley Fritz.
The 83 by DeLong is the tied for the fifth best round at a national tournament in the Chris Frenz era, which began in 2007.
"Meghan DeLong did a great job of staying within herself after starting out plus-seven through four holes," Frenz said. "To finish plus-four the the rest of the way after that start is awesome and shows her willingness to grind through a tough string of holes and fight back.
"She's inside the top 20 after day one so a good day (Wednesday) keeps her in the mix."
Southern Union State CC's Kylee Lynn is the first-day leader with a two-under par 70. Murray State's Amiya Raja is in second place with an opening round of 73.
DeLong, who earned third-team all-American honors at the national tournament as a freshman, is one shot out of 13th place.
NIACC sits in 11th place after the first day with a team total of 367.
"It was not a great start for us (Tuesday)," Frenz said, "but thankfully we have three more days to attack this course and move our way up the standings.
"The first four holes took their toll on us right out of the gates and on this golf course it is hard to battle back."
NIACC freshman Avery Knutsen shot 92, freshman Audrey Overgaard shot 94, sophomore Kenedee Frayne shot 98 and sophomore Addy Boell shot 112.
"Even though Avery Knutsen, Audrey Overgaard and Kenedee Frayne weren't overly pleased with how they played," Frenz said, "but I thought they did a good job after the start they had, too.
"Addy Boell had a tough day (Tuesday), but she'll bounce back (Wednesday)."
The four-day tournament resumes on Tuesday.
"None of these girls will give up, that's for sure," Frenz said. "We have goals set and we have three more days to achieve them."
Defending NJCAA Division II national champion Shelton State CC is the first-day leader with a team score of 320. Murray State is in second place with a 321 and Jefferson State CC is in third with a 325.
DMACC is in 10th place with a 350 and Iowa Central is in 13th place with a 376.
