SUNSET, S.C. – Senior Kathleen Gallagher and junior Monica Dibildox are leading the charge for the LSU women’s golf team following the first round of the Clemson Invitational. The upperclassmen are shooting 2-under each and are tied for 12th place.
“Our ladies played well today,” said LSU first-year head coach Garrett Runion. “It was a solid team effort with everybody’s score between 70 and 75. As a team, we have been getting off to nice starts and not finishing rounds as we would like. So it was nice to see us play the last four holes 5-under today and jump up the leaderboard.”
Gallagher shot two birdies and one bogey on the front nine and on the back nine, including a birdie on No. 18, to score a 70. Dibildox hit three birdies and two bogies on the front nine and followed up with a birdie on Hole 17 for her season-tying low of 70. Freshmen Presley Baggett and Alden Wallace were the other scorers in the first round at 1 over 73 and 2-over 74, respectively. Sophomore Kendall Griffin shot a 3-over 75 on the day.
“Kathleen and Monica had two nice rounds of 70 that got us started in the right direction and our underclassmen fought hard all day,” said Runion. “I’m very proud of how Presley finished her round today, playing the last four holes at 3-under par was very gutsy.”
The Tigers sit in a tie for seventh place with No. 5 Florida State at 1-under 287 for the round at The Reserve at Lake Keowee. It is the lowest round shot by LSU this season and first time the squad has shot an under par round since the third round of the 2017 SEC Championships, also 1-under 287. LSU is the top unranked team in the standings ahead of No. 17 Virginia, No. 18 Michigan State and No. 44 Tennessee.
LSU will be paired up with No. 5 Florida State, No. 28 Purdue and No. 34 Clemson for Round 2 on Monday. The Tigers will tee off at 7:30 a.m. CT from Holes No. 4-7 in a shotgun format due to impending weather. No. 7 Vanderbilt and No. 14 Auburn are in the lead at 10-under 278. Live scoring will be available at GolfStat.com.
Clemson Invitational Team Standings (After 1 Round)
1. #14 Auburn – 278 -10
1. #7 Vanderbilt – 278 -10
3. #31 Illinois – 283 -5
4. #48 Virginia Tech – 285 -3
5. #28 Purdue – 286 -2
5. #34 Clemson – 286 -2
7. LSU – 287 -1
7. #5 Florida State – 287 -1
9. Texas A&M – 288 E
10. Kentucky – 291 +3
10. #18 Michigan State – 291 +3
12. #44 Tennessee – 292 +4
12. #17 Virginia – 292 +4
14. Tulane – 293 +5
14. Augusta – 293 +5
16. Indiana – 294 +6
17. UNC Wilmington – 295 +7
18. Kansas – 303 +15
LSU Individual Results (After 1 Round)
T12. Kathleen Gallagher – 70 -2
T12. Monica Dibildox – 70 -2
T38. Presley Baggett – 73 +1
T56. Alden Wallace – 74 +2
T67. Kendall Griffin – 75 +3