Indiana men's golf competed in the Highlands Invitational, a 54-hole event against 11 other schools, which ran Sept. 21- 22. The women’s team also competed at the Bettie Lou Evans Invitational against 12 other schools on Monday and Tuesday.
Women’s golf put up a fight and tied for third at 863 points, 1-under par, with the University of California, Berkeley. The Hoosiers shot 284 in the opening round, followed by 285 and 294.
Junior Cara Heisterkamp was the Hoosiers’ leading scorer and stayed consistent. She began with a 3-under 69 in the first round, followed by a 2-under 70. She was the only player to finish the course 1-under par at 71 on the 7,490-yard course in the final round. At the Boilermaker Classic, from Aug. 31 to Sept. 1, she finished T-53rd at 16-over-par. Heisterkamp scored a total of twelve birdies, the highest amount by a Hoosier.
Senior Katie Poots had a steady performance. Poots followed closely behind, shooting
an even-par 72 to start out the rounds. For the second round, she was 3-over par with three birdies and four bogeys. She finished the tournament at 3-over par.
Senior Sheridan Clancy and sophomore Grace Heiss both shot 1-over-par with rounds of 73, helping Indiana close out the final round. Clancy delivered a solid three-round performance. She started off strong by shooting a 1-under-par 71 and then hit a 3-under-par 69 in the second round. Clancy finished with 3-under-par with one bogey, and Heiss finished 18-over-par with four bogeys, the most for the team.
Heiss had a difficult stretch throughout the tournament. She opened with a 7-over-par 79 in the first round, followed by a 10-over-par 82. She made a comeback for the final round and shot a 1-over-par 73.
Senior Harriet Lockley had trouble finding a groove on the course. She started out with a 6-over-par 78, then had a 4-over-par 76 and closed it out with a 16-over-par third round.
Sophomore Saia Rampersaud started with an even-par 72, and in the second round shot 1-under-par 71 before shooting a 10-over-par 82 in the final round.
Heisterkamp’s 6-under finish helped the Hoosiers clinch third place. However, the Hoosiers couldn’t catch the University of Kentucky, the tournament winner, with a 25-under-par final score.
Men’s golf
On the men's side, Indiana tied with College of Charleston for seventh place, with both being 13-over par.
They had strong first-round shooting at 3-under par, and moved to 11-over par in round two. The men’s team battled through to the third round shooting 5-over par.
Sophomore Jake Cesare was a top contender for the Hoosiers. He started off strong with a 3-under-par performance in the first round with three birdies and two bogeys. In the second round, he ended with 1-over-par but stuck with it in the third round, scoring an even-par 72.
Junior Bradley Chill started off the invitational with a 1-under-par 71 before shooting a 4-over 76 during the second round. Chill and junior Jamison Ousley both ended with an even-par for the final round.
Ousley opened the tournament with an even-par 72 for the first round with six birdies and six bogeys, prior to shooting 5-over 77 with three birdies and eight bogeys in the second round. In the final round, he had two birdies and two bogeys.
Senior Nick Piesen faced some challenges throughout the tournament. He began by shooting a 1-over 73 with five birdies and three bogeys for the first round. He then shot a 1-over 73 with four birdies and six bogeys in the second round. Piesen finished with a 5-over 77, with one birdie and four bogeys.
Senior Alec Cesare was steady to start with consistency throughout the first two rounds before struggling in the final round. He opened by shooting a 2-over-par 74 and did the same in the second round. However, he finished the tournament with a 6-over-par 78.
Indiana men’s golf will head to the Windon Memorial Classic hosted by Northwestern Sept. 28-29. Women’s golf will return Oct. 5-7 at The Ally, hosted by Mississippi State.
