Even with two top-20 individual performances, the Illinois women’s golf team couldn’t get it done after placing 16th among 20 teams at the Marsh Landing Invitational in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

The tournament featured top-25 teams Purdue and Texas Tech, as well as four other top-50 squads, but the course at the Marsh Landing Country Club was a relatively easy one.

“The layout was pretty much straightforward,” junior Ember Schuldt said. “(There was) not a lot of trouble around the hole.”

Head coach Renee Slone did not notice anything unusual during the practice round and did not expect the team to have a lot of trouble with the course.

“This was a golf course that really presented a number of scoring opportunities,” she said. “You could be aggressive, for the most part, anywhere. We just did not take advantage of the opportunities.”

Even Schuldt admitted her wedge play was not as sharp as she wanted it. She said she was not quite getting her shots as close to the hole as they should have been. Still, she and sophomore Samantha Postillion managed to stay competitive following a quick start on day one through the first two rounds. On the par-72 course, Schuldt and Postillion shot a 72 and 71 in round one, respectively. While both jumped around in the top 20 spots throughout the tournament, they each had one round that bumped them out of top-10 contention. Postillion finished in an eight-way tie for 11th place at 3-over-par and Schuldt in a three-way tie for 19th at 4-over.

After a slow start at the Insperity Lady Jaguar Invitational last month, Postillion knew what she needed to tweak to have more success come match play.

“I felt like my wedge after the last tournament was what I needed to work on,” she said. “By the time I got here … I felt my game was good overall.”

Postillion added that because the course was one of the shorter courses the team has played this season, it fit her game better because she’s a shorter hitter. The flatness of the course and slower greens were also in her favor because they helped her putting.

The team has been looking for a change of mindset during tournaments, and Slone acknowledged that the message might just be getting to Postillion and Schuldt.

“Both … posted some solid rounds,” Slone said. “Neither had their ‘A’ games, really. That shows the level of mental toughness we’ve been looking for this season.” 

While there are some positive individual results for the second straight tournament, the team as a whole is still a concern for Slone going into the final invitational before the Big Ten Tournament. Senior Crystal Smith tied for 90th. Sophomore Jacqueline Calamaro tied for 92nd and sophomore Michelle Mayer finished 99th individually.

The Illini will be in Columbus, Ohio, for the Lady Buckeye Spring Invite starting April 20. Postillion said she will try to get her teammates to practice as many extra minutes as they can to prepare. Whatever method they choose, Slone acknowledged the failure of applying what was learned early in an up-and-down fall season to the spring competitions.

“We’re not getting it done in that area,” Slone said. “Eventually, we’ve got to find a way to get it in the hole, and that’s just not happening.”

Alex can be reached at [email protected] and @AlexOrtiz2334.

Editor’s Note: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the golf team placed 17th in the Marsh Landing Invitational. The team placed 16th. The Daily Illini regrets this error.