by Eva Dean Folkert
Head coach Greg Stafford is quick to say his team has a long way to go, but the Hope College women's golf team is one less stroke closer to its final destination of a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association title.
The Flying Dutch captured the third MIAA Jamboree of the season on Saturday with a round of 330 at Milham Park Golf Club in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Saint Mary's College and Calvin University each finished with a 334 to tie for second.
It was Hope's second jamboree win of the week. Now, after three rounds, the Flying Dutch are in first place overall with 968 strokes while Saint Mary's is one stroke back at 969. Calvin is third with 984 strokes.
"The course was in great shape, it was a beautiful day, but it was windy," said Stafford about the day's conditions. "By looking at the scores, everybody struggled a bit, and we had not played on greens that fast yet this spring.
"But I was pleased. We did a good enough job chipping around the greens. Today was about survival. And we still have a long way to go until the last Jamboree."
The Flying Dutch were led by senior Abigail Meder (Lansing, Mich./Lansing Catholic Central), pictured right, who tied for second place individually at the Jamboree with a round of 80. Meder is also currently tied for second place in the league standings with a stroke average of 77.7.
Also in the top-ten on Saturday was junior Megan Jenkinson (Traverse City, Mich./Traverse City West HS) who shot an 82, good for sixth place individually on the day, as well as for fifth place in the overall league standings with 80.0 stroke average.
Rounding out Hope's scores on Saturday was senior Jordyn Rioux (Farmington, Mich./Livonia Ladywood HS) who fired an 83; and sophomore Grace VanDellen (Oxford, Mich./Lutheran Northwest HS), and freshman Emlin Munch (Traverse City, Mich./ Traverse City Central HS) who each finished with 85s.
The Flying Dutch get one day off and are back on action on Monday, April 5, hosting the fourth MIAA Jamboree at Clearbrook Golf Club in Saugatuck, Michigan.
"We're looking forward to hosting at Clearbrook. We've never hosted a Jamboree there before," Stafford said. "It'll be a new experience and we're just going to go out and see how we play."
