Freshman Marie Eline Madsen’s first season has been nothing short of spectacular. Through eight tournaments, she racked up six top-10 finishes and did not have a placement worse than 16th.
With a second-place finish, a third-place finish, two sixth-place finishes and most recently a fifth-place finish at the City of Oaks Collegiate, Madsen has been in a position to win but hasn’t gotten over the hump. After the City of Oaks Collegiate last week at NC State’s home course, where Madsen fell just short, her gaze remained set on the top of the podium.
“I’m proud of what I have accomplished,” Madsen said. “But it’s always about looking at what’s next for me. … I haven’t gotten a win yet, so that’s definitely something I’m trying to achieve.”
In her ninth collegiate event, the Ironwood Invitational, she finally broke through, securing the top spot with a 6-under par score in the 54-hole event. She led the Pack to a third-place finish with a team score of 34-over par, 23 strokes behind the winner, Virginia Tech.
As Madsen was dialed in, the rest of the team struggled to get going, and none of Madsen’s teammates finished inside of the top 25. The next highest finishers, all tying for 28th, were graduate Jaclyn Kenzel, junior Vania Simont and sophomore Leena Stephens, whose result didn’t even count towards the team as she was scored as an individual.
Madsen had little help, partially because the Pack came to Greenville, South Carolina shorthanded as senior Lauren Olivares Leon is currently handling more important matters — playing in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, which hosts the top 72 women’s golfers in the world. Find out more here.
Madsen, the 38th ranked women’s golfer in the NCAA, finished each of her rounds under par with an opening round 70 and second round 71 to take the lead after 36 holes, handling the pressure going into the final round with a score of 3-under par.
Stephens put on another strong performance as an individual, which would have contributed to the team total if she had made the starting five. Last week, head coach Darby Sligh said that deciding who makes the final spots on the roster is one of the toughest jobs of the coach.
“That’s one of our toughest jobs,” Sligh said. “Making sure the right players are in the lineup because we aren’t a bench sport, and there’s a finality to golf that you don’t have in other sports — whoever you put in the lineups.”
Stephens isn’t making that decision any easier as she continues to climb the standings and outperform a few of the starters.
Sophomore Lea Ludwig finished tied for 48th with a score of 17-over par after getting off to a rough start, shooting 80 in the opening round.
Senior Caitlin Whitehead finished tied for 53rd with a score of 18-over with rounds of 77, 79 and 78.
Another third-place finish for the Pack in a field where it was the highest-ranked team is not a promising result for the remainder of the spring. As the season comes to a close, the success of the team is dependent upon the third-to-fifth-position players, who need strong performances for the Pack to achieve in the postseason.
Next up, the Pack will be back at Lonnie Poole Golf Course, hosting the Wolfpack Matchplay on Monday, Apr. 7.
