Lipscomb Women’s Golf finished as runner-up in a field of 16 teams at The Nashville Invitational, which the team hosted on March 24 and 25. Ava Bankston led the Bisons by winning her first career individual championship.
The result marks a strong showing for Lipscomb, which used an impressive final round to move up two places and secure second place overall. The tournament began with challenging weather conditions, but the Bisons improved their performance each round. After starting with a score of 304 in the opening round, they posted a 293 in the second round to sit fourth after day one. In the final round, Lipscomb recorded a tournament-best team score of 290 to finish ahead of several rivals.
The Bisons outperformed ASUN Conference competitors Austin Peay by 29 strokes and finished more than 30 strokes ahead of North Alabama and Bellarmine. They also placed higher than local rival Belmont and Memphis.
Bankston was consistent throughout the event, opening with rounds of 74 and 73 before shooting a two-under-par-70 in her final round. Her steady play included ten birdies and thirty-three pars over three rounds. On her last hole, Bankston made a birdie that secured her victory after another competitor double-bogeyed.
Savannah Howell contributed to Lipscomb’s effort by finishing tied for ninth after improving each day with scores of 79, then carding rounds of seventy and seventy-two for an overall five-over-par total. Katya Tibbetts tied for twenty-second place while Casey Yu finished tied for thirty-second and Maria Alcocer ended tied for fifty-fifth.
Two other individuals represented Lipscomb: Christina Surcey tied for twenty-second place while Sonja Tibbetts tied for forty-ninth.
Looking ahead, Lipscomb will participate in its final regular season tournament at Texas A&M’s “Mo”Morial Invitational from April 6-8.
