Stage Set for Epic Sunday, as Scots Stay Four Back, Tigers Lurking in Distance

WESTFIELD CENTER, Ohio – The College of Wooster women's golf team kept it coming, going toe-to-toe with three-time defending North Coast Athletic Conference champion Denison University on Saturday, as both teams shot a 301. The Fighting Scots are still in the hunt for a first-ever conference title, sitting just four strokes back of the Big Red with one round to play. Lurking is the immediate distance is DePauw University, which enters the final round three strokes behind Wooster.

Wooster's round trails just the NCAC-opening 299 posted by the Scots for the top team round in program history. Saturday's 301 featured the top two scores in the program annals, with those coming from seniors Melissa Burtscher and Grace Lindgren. Burtscher's 71 is the program record by a stroke over a now-quartet of 72s by Burtscher (2), Lindgren's Saturday round, and Ada Pan. Burtscher secured the program record with a par on the par-4, 383-yard ninth hole, which was the women's closing hole on Saturday. Burtscher's focus on her play was the big key, as the senior turned at 1-over-par with eight pars on Westfield's back nine, including the final seven in that stretch. Burtscher played holes 12 through three at 1-under-par, thanks to rolling in a birdie on the par-4, 369-yard first hole. Burtscher's other birdie on the day came on No. 6, a 315-yard par four. Burtscher played 15 holes at par or better. The senior is in second-place at 143.

In déjà vu fashion to her then-career-best 74, it was the final 15 holes where Lindgren really shined. She played those at even par for her career-best 72. A birdie dropped on the par-5, 435-yard 14th hole and that was in the midst of a nine-hole stretch where Lindgren shot 1-under-par. Lindgren's strong close saw the senior shoot 1-under-par over the final three holes, with the birdie coming on the par-3, 151-yard eighth hole. Lindgren is in fifth-place at 149.

Next is junior Ally Siewert, who is tied for seventh-place at 152. Siewert was unstoppable come the front nine of the back-nine started round. She played holes three through nine at 1-under-par and did not have a blemish on the scorecard during that stretch. Siewert's birdie that moved the junior to 1-under-par down the stretch came on the par-4, 296-yard fifth hole. Siewert's first par of the day went in on No. 13 and she followed that with a par on the par-5, 435-yard 14th hole.

First-year Morgan Erdmann is tied for 12th-place at 156. She followed a career-best 76 up with an 80. Erdmann rolled in a par on the par-3, 129-yard 11th hole and that was the first of four straight pars for the first-year. Her first birdie of the day came on the par-5, 411-yard 16th hole and a second birdie dropped in on No. 6.

First-year Abby Haywood shot an 85 and has a two-day total of 166. Haywood is in 18th-place. Haywood logged five pars on the day, with two of those coming on par-five holes just before the turn.

Round three starts at 1 p.m. on Sunday. The women are starting on hole one. Denison enters the round at 596, Wooster at 600, and DePauw at 603. The Tigers' Becky Williams aced hole 11 and had one other eagle en route to a 6-under-par 64. Williams is the clubhouse leader for medalist at 7-under-par.