NOTRE DAME, Ind. — Coming off a summer in which many Irish players studied abroad and took part in various internships and one that was capped off by a team trip to Scotland and Northern Ireland to play some of the most prestigious courses in the word, the Fighting Irish women’s golf team will open the 2018-19 season on Monday, September 10 at the Minnesota Invitational.
The two-day event will take place at the Prestwick Golf Club in Woodbury, Minnesota.
With Notre Dame returning all five players from last season’s NCAA Regional starting lineup, including a trio of seniors in Emma Albrecht, Isabella DiLisio and Maddie Rose Hamilton, the Fighting Irish have high hopes for the 2018-19 season.
“Coming off a [2017-18] season where the team had the lowest stroke average in program history has me really excited to see what this team can do this year,” head coach Susan Holt said. “We have our core four players returning in Maddie, Isabella, Emma and Abby and have quality depth at the fourth and fifth positions. The talent is in place, it is just going to come down to being prepared and executing when it’s time to compete.”
In addition to posting the program’s lowest team stroke average (293.50), three players turned in top-15 individual stroke averages in 2017-18. Albrecht led the way with a program-best mark of 72.31, while Hamilton had the program’s sixth-lowest total at 73.86 and Heck had the 14th-best mark at 74.75.
Last season at the Minnesota Invitational, Notre Dame finished tied for third with a team score of ten-under par (284-289-281=854).
“We had three solid rounds last year at this event,” Holt added. “The course sets up well for us and the team really wanted to play the course again since we had success last year so we are excited to be going back. I think the key for us to be successful comes down to consistency each day. If we can do that, we will be competitive every time we tee it up.”
2018 Minnesota Invitational
Dates: September 10-11, 2018
Format: 54 holes (36 holes on Monday, 18 holes on Tuesday)
Tee Times: Tee times begin Monday at 7:40 a.m. CT off the #1 and #10 tee with continuous play for all 36 holes Monday. Tuesday will be a 9:15 a.m. CT shotgun start.
Location: Woodbury, Minnesota
Course (Par/Yardage): Prestwick Golf Club (par 72/ 6,479 yards)
The Field: East Carolina, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisville, Middle Tennessee, Minnesota, Missouri, North Texas, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Rutgers, San Francisco, San Jose State, South Dakota State, Virginia Tech
Notre Dame Lineup: Maddie Rose Hamilton (1), Isabella DiLisio (2), Emma Albrecht (3), Abby Heck (4) and Claire Albrecht (5). Mia Ayer will be playing as an individual entrant.
Live Scoring: Golfstat.com
Twitter: @NDwomensGolf
Year In Review (2017-18)
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The Irish returned to NCAA Regional play (Madison) and set the program record for lowest season stroke average (293.50).
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Notre Dame posted top-five finishes at the Minnesota Invitational and the Clover Cup, while winning the Bettie Lou Evans Invitational for their first tournament win in two years.
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The Irish also had a strong showing at the Schooner Fall Classic, finishing tied for sixth on the strength of a final round 278 (-6).
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Emma Albrecht earned co-medalist honors at the Bettie Lou Evans Invitational.
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Maddie Rose Hamilton set the program record by shooting a second-round 65 (-6) at the event. The -6 also tied for the lowest round in program history in relation to par.
Welcome To The Irish
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Notre Dame added one player to the roster for 2018-19 in freshman Claire Albrecht (Ormond Beach, Florida/Mainland).
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The talented freshman will make her Irish debut playing in the No. 5 position at the Minnesota Invitational.
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Claire is the younger sister of Irish senior Emma Albrecht and they become the fifth pair of sisters to golf for the Irish and first set since Katie (’06) and Annie (’10) Brophy.
Notre Dame Under Holt
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Head Coach Susan Holt has led Notre Dame to 10 NCAA regional appearances in the last 11 seasons, including the first NCAA Championship berth in program history (2011), while lowering the team’s season stroke average by more than 10 strokes since she arrived on the scene in 2006.
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Holt has piloted Notre Dame to four conference titles, 17 total tournament championships and the top 12 single-season stroke averages in the program’s record book, all while guiding Fighting Irish players to 15 medalist honors and 27 all-conference accolades as well as the first two All-America selections in Notre Dame women’s golf history.
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In the classroom, Fighting Irish players under Holt have collected 31 NGCA/WGCA All-Scholar Team citations, 44 conference all-academic team certificates and the first three Academic All-America honors in program history (Ashley Armstrong in 2013, 2014 and 2015).
Next Up
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The Irish will head back to the Schooner Fall Classic once again, with the three-day event scheduled to take place on Sept. 28-30 in Norman, Oklahoma.
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It will mark Notre Dame’s fifth consecutive season playing in the Schooner Fall Classic.
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In 2017, the Irish tied for sixth by shooting an 854 (294-282-278) at the par 71 course.
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The final round 278 marked the second-lowest team round in the Irish records book.
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In 2017’s second round, Hamilton fired a six-under par 65 for the lowest round in program history.
— ND —