HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. - Chattanooga repeated as Southern Conference champions after shooting a three-day total 900 (+36) and placing all four scorers in the top seven at the 2011 Southern Conference Women's Golf Championship at the Moss Creek Golf Club.
Since the SoCon Tournament has been held at Moss Creek Golf Club since 2009, Chattanooga put together a day-low 292 (+4) and a three-day course low +36. The Lady Mocs finished comfortably ahead of second place College of Charleston which put together a three-day score of 930 (+66).
Chattanooga's Emma de Groot shot a three-over par 219 for the tournament and led all three days to win her first individual conference title. The Chattanooga senior earned her fourth consecutive all-conference honor and was selected as the SoCon Player of the Year by the coaches.
Joining de Groot in the top seven for Chattanooga was freshman Jordan Britt (2nd, 222), Maria Juliana Loza (T-5th, 230) and Christine Wolf (T-7th, 231). Britt, who shot a tournament low two-under par 70 in the final round, was selected on the all-freshman team while Loza and Wolf were honored by the coaches on the all-conference team.
Also taking home honors for the Lady Mocs were Marion Duvernay and Yushira Budhram, who both received all-freshman recognition. Along with the players, Chattanooga's Colette Murray was selected as the SoCon Coach of the Year for the second straight season.
College of Charleston finished second for the second straight year and was led by all-conference selection Leigh Whittaker (4th, 230) and Ainhoa Nogales (T-7, 231).
Furman (934) finished four strokes behind the Cougars to claim third while Western Carolina (936) came in fourth place. Stefanie Kenoyer represented the Paladins on the all-conference team while Josefine Sundh and Malin Jansson were the Catamounts players on the all-conference.
Elon's Tara McFadden was the lone Phoenix on the all-conference team, as the team finished with a three-day total of 956 to come in fifth.
Coming in sixth was UNCG (956), followed by Samford (967) in seventh.
Wofford (975) finished in eighth place and was led by all-conference selection Alex Rankin (T-7th, 231) and Freshman of the Year Anne Marie Covar.
Appalachian State (979) and The Citadel (1049) complete the final standings, respectively. Yue Xu from Appalachian State, last season's medalist, earned all-conference for the Mountaineers.
With the win, Chattanooga advances to its third consecutive NCAA regional on May 5-7.
Top-10 Individuals
1. Emma de Groot, Chattanooga 74-71-74=219 +3
2. Jordan Britt, Chattanooga 77-75-70=222 +6
3. Alexa Rancourt, Furman 78-74-73=225 +9
4. Leigh Whittaker, College of Charleston 78-75-76=229 +13
T5. Maria Juliana Loza, Chattanooga 78-80-72=230 +14
T5. Tiffany Schisler, Western Carolina 81-76-73=230 +14
T7. Malin Jannson, Western Carolina 81-77-73=231 +15
T7. Ainhoa Nogales, College of Charleston 77-78-76=231 +15
T7. Alex Rankin, Wofford 79-75-77=231 +15
T7. Christine Wolf, Chattanooga 75-80-76=231 +15
Team Standings
1. Chattanooga 303-305 -292=900 +36
2. College of Charleston 313-312 -305=930 +66
3. Furman 311-319 -303=934 +70
4. Western Carolina 320-311 -302=936 +72
5. Elon 323-311 -309=949 +85
6. UNCG 321-319 -326=956 +92
7. Samford 323-325 -319=967 +103
8. Wofford 332-326 -317=975 +111
9. Appalachian State 331-319 -329=979 +115
10. The Citadel 346-351-352=1049 +185
All-Conference Team
Yue Xu, Appalachian State
Leigh Whittaker, College of Charleston
Tara McFadden, Elon
Stefanie Kenoyer, Furman
Emma de Groot, Chattanooga
Maria Juliana Loza, Chattanooga
Christine Wolf, Chattanooga
Malin Jannson, Western Carolina
Josefine Sundh, Western Carolina
Alex Rankin, Wofford
All-Freshman Team
Jordan Britt, Chattanooga
Yushira Budhram, Chattanooga
Marion Duvernay, Chattanooga
Lizzie Bundy, UNCG
Anne Marie Covar, Wofford
Player of the Year
Emma de Groot, Chattanooga
Freshman of the Year
Anne Marie Covar, Wofford
Coach of the Year
Colette Murray, Chattanooga
