HASTINGS, Neb. – She’s making a push for another tournament title. After the first of two rounds at the Hastings Invite, Kendra Placke leads the field of 39 golfers thanks to her five-over-par 77 on Monday (April 11). With Placke holding down the top spot, Concordia University Women’s Golf is also the tournament leader as a team by a seven-stroke margin. The field of teams is seven deep and includes GPAC rivals Mount Marty (second), Hastings (third), Dordt (fourth) and Doane (sixth).
Head Coach Brett Muller’s squad is coming off a fourth-place team finish at its own Concordia Bulldog Invite (April 5). The Bulldogs shot a team score of 346 at Lochland Country Club on Monday.
Champion of the Concordia Bulldog Invite, Placke will head into day two of the Hastings Invite with a two-stroke lead over Valdisa Andov of Tabor College (Kan.). Placke shot a three-over-par 75 while claiming her fifth career tournament title last week. In order to stay on top of the team race, Placke can’t do it alone. Concordia got solid performances on Monday out of the Nos. 2 and 3 spots in the lineup as Lauren Havlat and Mya Nurse turned in identical 87s (tied for 10th). The rest of the team’s group of five included Logan Eschliman (95; T-20th) and Sarah Wilson (100; 27th). While competing individually, Ashley Gerczysnki shot a 95 (T-20th).
Placke has shot a 77 or lower for the seventh time this 2021-22 season. She entered this week with a season scoring average of 79.6. The Seward native has placed in the top 10 of all eight events this season. Havlat is aiming for her second tournament top 10 placement of the campaign.
Round two will begin with a shotgun start at 10 a.m. CT on Tuesday from Lochland Country Club. The event includes both a men’s and women's tournament. Live results can be followed by visiting https://www.golfgenius.com/ or the Golf Genius app and by using the GGID of HCSPRINGINVITE22.