First-year Melissa Cooke had a birdie on hole 12 on Sunday. Photo by Matt Dilyard.

The College of Wooster women's golf team had an eight-stroke improvement on Sunday to finish at 706 at the Denison University Spring Invitational, which was held at the par-71, 5,805-yard Denison Golf Club this weekend.

First-year Melissa Cooke emerged as the catalyst behind the Fighting Scots' bounce-back on Sunday. Cooke shaved nine strokes off Saturday's score and signed for an 87 on Sunday. The rookie placed 20th at 183 and carded a birdie on the par-5, 484-yard 12th hole.

Senior anchor Megan Gronau was the Scots' steady performer on the weekend. She carded a second straight 86 and tied for 12th-place at 172. Classmate Tongtong Wu was next at 173, and that score ranked 15th in the field. Wu shot an 86 on Sunday, and that round started with three straight pars.

Junior Kayla Audette's 90 was the final score added on the team total on Sunday. Audette placed 17th with a 36-hole total of 178. Sophomore Riley Thorr rounded out the lineup. She shot a 98 to finish the weekend at 200. Senior Devon Matson competed as an individual and had a two-stroke improvement from Saturday's round.

Host Denison continued to run away from the field. The Big Red's 634 was 27 strokes better than runner-up DePauw University's 661. Wittenberg University (675) and Ohio Wesleyan University (762) comprised the rest of the field. Denison's Sophia Alexander was the medalist at 154.

Up next is the NCAC Championships, which start on Saturday, April 24 at Denison Golf Club.