Bradley women’s golf traveled to Arkansas to compete in the Diamante Intercollegiate, the final tournament of the fall season. The weekend was dominated by Florida Gulf Coast, which won the event’s individual and team championships.
In their toughest competition yet, the Braves finished 15th out of 18 programs, matching their performance last year in the Hot Springs Village competition.
“This tournament was one of highs and lows,” head coach Halley Morell said. “Our second round of 290 (+2) was our best round of the season, with three players shooting under par for their rounds, so that was definitely a bright spot. Unfortunately, the team struggled on the final day, which led us to a 15th-place finish.”
Despite the team’s overall score of +30, the individual performances were still impressive. Allison Pacocha was the star of the show for Bradley, finishing 18th out of the 99 golfers competing. The junior from Eureka finished with a score of par, which was the first time she led the team this season.
“This last tournament, I just wanted to play steady and boring golf,” Pacocha said. “I have learned to control my breathing and how I think on a golf course over the last few seasons, so it was nice to see that all come together.”
As for the rest of the team, senior Maria Perakis finished 34th with a score of +5. Sophomore Brooke Deebs, who was competing separately from Bradley, finished in 47th place, scoring +7 across 54 holes. Sophomore Jillian Cosler finished with a score of +11, finishing 69th. Junior Caroline McConnell finished on Tuesday in 87th place with a score of +18. Finally, freshman Peyton Coburn scored a total of +21, landing her in 93rd place.
“Overall, we saw great things from everyone on the team,” Pacocha said. “This weekend was a true team effort with supporting one another and utilizing everyone’s game and strategies. Although we didn’t finish quite how we had wanted, each player had positive moments and takeaways from each round, which we can take into the spring season.”
Even with this blip on the radar at the Diamante Intercollegiate, Bradley still proved they are a force to be reckoned with this year. They have finished in the top five as a team in four of the five tournaments they competed in this fall, including two first-place finishes. McConnell and Cosler also also earned two individual championships.
“This fall has been a big success with two team wins and two different players winning individual titles,” Morell said. “However, golf has a way of humbling you quickly, so we need to keep pushing forward so we can continue this momentum into our spring championship season.”
Bradley will take a four-month break and, upon returning, compete in the Rio Verde Invitational. They hope to improve on their seventh-place finish from last year when they golfed in Arizona. The team revealed how they will improve their skills during the winter.
“The off-season is a time for reflection and analyzing what went well and what needs to be worked on,” Morell said. “We will spend the next couple of weeks diving into the stats and creating individualized off-season plans for each player for improvement.”
“This winter and heading into the spring season, I will continue to work on my short game,” Pacocha added. “Pitching, chipping and putting are three areas of my game that will always need to be maintained to keep a good mindset over those shots.”
The Rio Verde Invitational starts on Feb. 21, where Bradley women’s golf will hope to start a run of dominance leading to the MVC championship.
