Sporting a lineup with three of six players making their NCAA debut, the Michigan women’s golf team kicked off its 2023-24 season at the Mary Fossum Invitational.
Graduate student Hailey Borja’s veteran experience was put on full display, as she fired 69-76-73 (2 over par) to capture a share of ninth place individually. And though several underclassmen showed glimpses of promise, the Wolverines as a team shot 292-306-301, taking 10th place in a field of 15 teams.
Slightly underwhelming was the performance of senior Monet Chun, whose weekend of 76-76-77 fell well above her junior-year scoring average of 73.14. Despite this slow start, she’ll likely get plenty of playing time and chances to prove herself in coming events.
“Just going to have some bad weeks,” Michigan coach Jan Dowling said. “We’re going to work hard the next five days before we head to our next tournament and (Chun) will adjust. Certainly not her standard of play (this weekend), and I think she’s itching to get back into a tournament and shoot some low scores.”
The team’s potential could be characterized as unfulfilled, with Michigan finding itself tied for fourth after the first day of competition before falling to 10th by the end of the weekend. But considering it’s only the season opener with a lineup featuring three newly minted players, there are also several positives to take away.
Borja, for one, performed at her typical high standard throughout the course of the weekend. She birdied the first two holes and five total across the first round to shoot a stellar 3-under-par score of 69. Despite minor second-round struggles, she rallied during the final 18 holes to lock up her 15th career top-10 finish.
As evidenced by her current pursuit of the Michigan career scoring average record, Borja has consistently played great golf for the team.
“We saw from(Borja) what we always see, which is world class ball striking,” Dowling said. “And particularly that first round she putted nicely and made quite a few birdies and got under par. … She’s someone that we can rely on as a team, both in her attitude and consistency. The scores kind of take care of themselves.”
Borja’s value — not only as a player, but also as a leader — cannot be understated, especially on such a young team.
Redshirt freshman Mara Janess, who sat out last year due to team depth, impressed in her debut. She carded a first-round eagle on the par-5 17th, but was also plagued by bogeys across the course of the second round, ultimately shooting 74-78-75 for a three day total of 11 over. Despite a slow second round, the future looks bright for Janess.
“It was an excellent debut. We are thrilled,” Dowling said. “(Janess) … knew she needed some technical work done to her golf swing to take her to the next level. She did all that work and she’s starting to see some of that benefit now.”
Freshmen Sidney Yermish and Grace Wang also made their first NCAA starts, posting weekend totals of 13 over par and 20 over par, respectively. Yermish encouragingly overcame a triple-bogey six on hole 12 to shoot a first-round score of 73.
Sophomore Sydney Sung, who won the Pacific Northwest Women’s Amateur Championship this summer, played as an individual this weekend. Although her score did not count toward the team total, she found increasing levels of success as the tournament progressed, shooting 77-75-74 for a total of 10 over par.
Although Chun will look to bounce back in the coming weeks, several good takeaways can be made about Michigan’s young talent. While one tournament is hardly a gauge of how a full season will play out, the Wolverines’ potential for growth is hard to deny.
Source: Michigan Daily