Wheeling, W. Va. – Through the first three tournaments of the season, the Wheeling University Women's Golf team has battled across three Mountain East Conference (MEC) Tournaments. Their run of MEC regular season tournaments wraps up on Monday as they head to the Fairmont State Invitational on Monday, with tee times beginning at 9 AM. The Cardinals are coming off of one of their best individual performances of the season and they look to continue to grow as they hit their fourth tournament of the season.
The Cardinals are coming off a showing at the Pipesteam Classic, where they sent three golfers to battle against five teams, four of those from the MEC. On the first day of the event, the Cardinal trio combined to shoot 266 across the first 18 holes, with two of those three golfers setting PR's at the event. The Cardinals would also have two golfers sitting in the top five of the event, including the tournament leader, and they headed into day two looking to move up the individual standings. Over the second 18 holes, the trio added nine strokes to their combined score, shooting a 270, but their work on the first day was enough to keep two golfers in the top 10 of the event. In the end, the Cardinals were able to beat out the duo of golfers from Bluefield State and finished as the top individual team at the event. All three Cardinal golfers look to continue to grow as they battle their conference opponents one more time before the 2025 MEC Women's Golf Championships.
Leading the way for the Cardinals was senior Ella Keffer, who picked up her first collegiate event win at the Pipesteam Classic. She beat out the rest of the field by nine strokes, after building a seven-stroke lead on day one, and set a new two-round PR of 150 at the event. Her biggest performance came in round one, where she nearly shot her first under par round of her entire golf career. She went into hole 18 sitting at -2 for the round and needed at least a Bogey to finish under par. However, it would be a double for the senior, and she finished at par for the event. She added a 78 on the second day of competition, but her early lead in the field was enough to secure the tournament win. For her efforts, Keffer was named the MEC's Women's Golfer of the week for the first time in her career. In six rounds played this season, Keffer has either tied or set a new PR four times as she looks to compete for the top spot in the MEC later this fall.
Another golfer who continues to grow on the course for the Cardinals is sophomore Mallory Bozovich. Bozovich put together her best round of her career over her first 18 holes, shooting a 107 to break her previous PR by six strokes. In the round, Bozovich picked up her first collegiate par on hole eight and continued her success into day two of competition. She would equal that PR on the second day of the event, and picked up her best career finish at 16th overall. In the tournament, Bozovich would pick up her first career birdie and first career par, while finishing with eight bogeys across the two rounds as she continues to grow on the course. Rounding out the field was Brielle Milhoan, who had her best round over the first 18 holes of play. Milhoan was the other Cardinal to finish in the top 10 of the event, and started the tournament with an 87 on day one. It was enough to keep her in the top 10 after shooting a 90 on day two as she took seventh overall.
As the Cardinals wrap up the MEC portion of their regular season schedule, the Cardinals will head to the Green Hills Country Club for the Senator Larry Edgell Invitational. There will be five different MEC teams in the field, with Wheeling competing against Fairmont State, Glenville State, the University of Charleston, and West Virginia Wesleyan. The other team in the field will be Ursuline College as the lone non-conference team. The Cardinals will once again be only posting individual scores, with two golfers making the trip in Ella Keffer and Brielle Milhoan. The Senator Larry Edgell Invitational will be a two-day event with the players each playing one round on each day. The first round of competition will begin Monday at 11 AM, and continues with the second 18 holes on Wednesday.
The Senator Larry Edgell Invitational is set to begin on Monday, September 22nd, with tee times beginning at 11 AM. You can follow along with Live Results by clicking HERE.
