Erin Hawe

Kent State pair shoots one-under 71 as Golden Flashes are tied for sixth place

ATHENS, Ga. - The Kent State women's golf team got the Liz Murphey Collegiate Classic off to a good start Friday, as the Golden Flashes posted a team score of six-over 294 to tie for sixth place in the 18-team tournament hosted by the University of Georgia.

Kent State's strong start to the day helped keep the Golden Flashes near the top of the leaderboard Friday. Through the first nine holes, Kent State was two-under as a team to put the Golden Flashes atop the leaderboard early on; the team's start was the best nine-hole start from the 18-team field on Friday.

The tournament field, competing on the par-72 University of Georgia Golf Course, features 13 top 50 teams in the country.

Sophomore Erin Hawe (Walton, New Zealand) tied her lowest round of the season with a one-under 71 on Friday. Hawe was steady throughout with two birdies to cancel a bogey on the day; she was unblemished with nine pars on the front nine.

Senior Mercedes Germino (Necochea, Argentina) had five birdies on the day, including two on her final three holes, to finish one-under. Germino was unwavered after a double-bogey and bogey moved her over par, but her birdies on the par-5 No. 7 and par-4 No. 9 dropped her to a 71, which tied her and Hawe for 11th overall.

Freshman Jennifer Ha (Calgary, Alberta) used a pair of birdies to help finish with a three-over 75, tying her for 41^st overall.

Senior Mandi Morrow (Kent, Ohio) made up for a rough start with an even-par 35 on the front nine of the course to finish with a four-over 76. Fellow senior Shamira Marshall (Macedonia, Ohio) wrapped up the team's round with a five-over 77.

The team's solid start as a group was key to Kent State's Friday effort. Germino tallied birdies on No. 11 and No. 18 to go out with a two-under 35. Hawe also broke par on her first nine holes, recovering from a bogey on No. 12 with a birdies on No. 14 and No. 18 to go one-under on the back nine.

Marshall was error-free on the back nine, carding nine straight pars to start the day, while Ha was one-over on the back with two bogeys and a birdie on No. 15.

Second-ranked Alabama leads the tournament field with a 10-under 278, aided by a six-under 66 by Jennifer Kirby to tie the tournament's low round in its 40^th year of play. Alabama leads Georgia by six strokes.

After starting on the back nine on Friday, Kent State will be off the first tee Saturday paired with Florida and Virginia beginning at 9:50 a.m.