SAUGATUCK, Mich. - The Saint Mary's golf team took first place at the second of three MIAA NCAA Automatic Qualifier rounds with a 323 on a rainy Friday afternoon at Hope's Clearbrook Golf Club.

 

The Belles were 14 strokes ahead of second place Hope's score of 337. Calvin took third with a 339, and Adrian was fourth with a 349. Saint Mary's holds the overall lead for the conference automatic qualifier to the national tournament going into Saturday's round.

 

Isa Patacsil shot a collegiate career-low 78 to take medalist honors at the event to pace the Belles. The junior shared round-high honors with three birdies, added eight pars, and led the field in par four scoring in the round. Patacsil added an even-par effort on par three holes on the day.

 

Katherine Hopkins and Haley Angel tied for second place with scores of 81. Hopkins matched Patacsil's three birdies while registering eight pars. The junior led the field in par three scoring and was tied for the second-best par four scoring round. Angel circled two birdies on her scorecard while posting seven pars. She was tied for the second-best par four scoring, was one-over on par three holes, and was two-over on par five holes.

 

Sydney Hruskoci solidified the win for the Belles with an 83 to finish tied for sixth. The senior captain was tied for the round lead with 10 pars. She was one-over on par five holes on the day and added a two-over effort on par three holes. Erin Bennett was the fifth golfer in the Belles' lineup and shot an 85 to tie for ninth. Bennett also had 10 pars to tie for the round lead in the category and was even on par three holes while going three-over on par five holes.

 

The Belles now look to the final 18-hole MIAA NCAA Automatic Qualifier round, which takes place on Saturday at Clearbrook Golf Club starting at 1:00 p.m. The team with the lowest 54-hole total after tomorrow's round will receive the conference's automatic bid to the 2022 NCAA Division III Championships in May.