Smith Sets New 18 Hole Record as Women's Golf Starts Off Strong at William & Mary Invitational

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. - Senior Mikayla Smith set a school record for an 18 hole round with a 6-under 66 as women's golf began its fall season in great fashion on Sunday with three golfers in the top 26 individually. The Musketeers finished 36 holes in a tie for fifth as a team, carding a combined 598 (+22).

Smith, competing as an individual, shot a blistering 6-under in the second round to break Xavier's all-time 18 hole record by three strokes. The previous record of 69 was shared by nine golfers and had been the XU record since 2003 when Abby Fowler set the mark at the CAA Championships. The record had been tied in six of the last seven seasons by recent Musketeers, including twice by current junior Mikayla Fitzpatrick in 2016 and 2018.

Smith finished the day tied for third, following up her first round 77 (+5) with a record performance in the afternoon. She carded 10 birdies on the day, which leads the field. Smith is also tied for second in par 3 scoring at 2.75 (-2).

A freshman, Kayla Benge, led the counting scores for Xavier with an even first round and a 73 (+1) in the second round. At 1-over, Benge is tied for seventh after 36 holes at her first collegiate competition. Benge is also tied for first in par 5 scoring at 4.63 (-3) and tied for fourth in par 4 scoring at 4.00 (E).

Fitzpatrick followed up a first round 72 (E) with a 76 (+4) in the second round, giving her a total score of 148 (+4), which is good for a tie for 16th through the first two rounds. Fitzpatrick is tied for fifth in pars through the first two rounds with 28 total.

Morgan Tinsley shot a 79 (+7) in the first round and lowered her score by six strokes in her second 18, earning her a 73 (+1) and a total of 152. At 1-over, Tinsley is tied for 26th overall for the invitational. She currently has 23 total pars, tied for second most on the team in the meet.

Andie Shukow is tied for 31st after the first two rounds, moving up 11 places after the first round (T42). She shot six strokes better from the first round, shooting a 74 (+2), giving her a total of 154 (+10) for the first two rounds.

Ke'Asha Phillips also saw an improvement in her score in the second round, improving by six strokes and shooting a 75 (+3). Her second round effort moved her up 17 spots on the individual leaderboard and into 35th after day one. Phillips is currently tied for fifth in Par 3 scoring with 2.88 (-1).

INDIVIDUAL RESULTS

TEAM RESULTS

Xavier completed the first two rounds in a tie for fifth place as a team with a score of 598. The Musketeers currently have two golfers in the top ten (Smith T3 and Benge T7) and will look to build on the impressive first 36 holes in the last round tomorrow.

Marshall currently leads the invitational at a total score of 585.

NEXT UP

Xavier will continue action tomorrow at 8:30 a.m. with a shotgun start. This will be the final round of the invitational.

COVERAGE

No live scoring is available this weekend, but results will be posted to GoXavier.com following the final round.

For tournament updates and more information on Xavier golf, visit www.GoXavier.com and follow @XavierWGOLF on Twitter.

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