BLANCO, Texas -- The Southwestern University women led from start to finish and earned the program its second consecutive SCAC title and record eighth overall with a convincing 46-shot victory Tuesday afternoon at Vaaler Creek Golf Club in Blanco, Texas. Official Championship Website | Results | Day Two Photo Gallery | Interview with Southwestern's Emily Campbell and Head Coach Greg Sigler
Southwestern had been tied with DePauw University for the most women's team golf championships. The Pirates previously won titles in 1998, 1999, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2013 and 2018.
Unlike last year when Southwestern had to fight off Trinty in a two hole team playoff, the Pirates were never seriously threatened. After taking a 22-shot lead following Monday's opening round 315, Southwestern was 24 shots clear of the field on Tuesday to finish at 319 for the round. The Pirates' two-day total of 634 established a new SCAC record, besting the 639 Rhodes' shot at the 2001 championships, and it was six shots better than the mark posted in any of the three previous conference tournaments played at Vaaler Creek.
Southwestern junior Emily Campbell, returning from an injury that forced her to withdraw from last year's conference championship, was in fine form, firing two rounds of 76 (+4) to finish at 152 (+8) for the event to earn medalist honors. She had a field-high six birdies and her 21 pars were the second-most. Her 152 also marked the second-lowest score in 36-hole SCAC women's tournament history, just two shots behind the 150 shot by Emily Burch of Rhodes in the 2001 championships.
In addition to Campbell, junior Leilani McDaniel (77-77--154), senior Valentina Olivieri (84-81--165) and senior Katherine Dyo (83-85--168) finished second, fourth and tied for fifth, respectively, to give the Pirates four of the six members that earned All-SCAC First Team slots. Senior Mikayla Miller (70-90--169) was just a shot behind Dyo and earned Second Team All-SCAC honors.
Trinity University finished in second place with a team score of 680 and was led by First Team All-SCAC freshman Raquel Hill, who finished tied for fifth with a two-day total of 168 (85-83). Senior Emilee Strausburg (86-84--170) and first-year Sarah Buss (82-90--172) earned Second Team honors, finishing in eighth and 10th, respectively.
Rounding out the team standings, Schreiner University finished in third after a two-day total of 705 to finish one shot ahead of Texas Lutheran University who posted a 706. The Mountaineers were led by junior Reygan Rodriguez who finished in ninth with a 171 (82-89) and earned Second Team All-SCAC honors. The Bulldogs got an All-SCAC First Team performance out of junior and last year's tournament medalist Summer Swift. Swift posted rounds of 81 and 83 to finish in third and eight shots out of the individual lead.
Centenary College finished in fifth place with a 835, and Johnson & Wales University, making its conference championship golfing debut, finished sixth with a 1,157.
Since the SCAC doesn’t have an automatic bid, conference teams and individuals will await word of at-large selections when the NCAA makes that announcement on Monday, May 6th.
2019 All-SCAC Women's Golf First Team
1. Emily Campbell, Southwestern - 76-76--152
2. Leilani McDaniel, Southwestern - 77-77--154
3. Summer Swift, Texas Lutheran - 81-83--164
4. Valentina Olivieri, Southwestern - 84-81--165
T5. Katherine Dyo, Southwestern - 83-85--168
T5. Raquel Hill, Trinity - 85-83--168
2019 All-SCAC Women's Golf Second Team
7. Mikayla Miller, Southwestern - 79-90--169
8. Emilee Strausburg, Trinity - 86-84--170
9. Reygan Rodriguez, Schreiner - 82-89--171
10. Sarah Buss, Trinity - 82-90--172
11. Katelyn Smith, Schreiner - 91-83--174
2019 SCAC Women's Golf Tournament Medalist
Emily Campbell, Southwestern
For a complete wrap-up of today's final round, including interviews with the winners and a Day Two photo gallery, click here for the official website of the 2019 SCAC Women's Golf Championship.