Dalton State posted a team round of (+15, 303) to finish off a wire-to-wire in win in the SSAC Championships at Arrowhead Country Club in Montgomery, Ala. on Wednesday. This is the third SSAC Championship in four years for the Lady Roadrunners. Dalton State, (+25, 889), finished 35 shots ahead of second place #20 Faulkner (Ala.), (+60, 924).
#7 William Carey (Miss.), (+68, 932), finished in third. Mobile (Ala.), (+92, 956), finished in fourth followed by #18 Loyola (La.), (+94, 958), in fifth.
All-American Isabel Rijos led a 1-2-3 finish for the Lady Roadrunners, firing a final round (+3, 75) for a three-shot victory and the individual medalist title.
She is the second consecutive individual medalist for Dalton State and the third overall after Tia Teiniketo in 2017 and Caroline Griffin in 2015. Rijos would bogey her opening hole, but battled tough playing the remaining 17 holes in 2-over to clinch the title.
All-American Tia Teiniketo would finish as the runner-up after a round of (+4, 76). Teiniketo would make the turn to the back 9 at (+1) and with a shot for the title, but three bogeys down the stretch would have her finish right behind her teammate.
All-American Caroline Griffin would jump up three spots after a final round (+2, 74) and finish third in her final SSAC Championships. Griffin would hit an early birdie at No. 3 to gain some momentum, but bogeys at Nos. 5 & 6 saw her make the turn at (+1). Her back 9 would be a little more up-and-down, but she would close out in style with a birdie at No. 18.
All-American Katie Dalton, (+6, 78), would slide down two spots in the finishing order on the final day, but still brought it home in fifth along with a selection on the All-Tournament team. Dalton would bogey No. 5 and double-bogey No. 6 to go 3-over on her first six holes. She would get some momentum going with a birdie on No. 9 to make the turn at (+2). Like the rest of the field, she would struggle on the back 9, posting bogeys at Nos. 13, 14, 15, & 17.
Sophomore Hannah Gasaway, like Dalton, carded a round of (+6, 78) on the afternoon to hold on for a ninth place finish overall. Gasaway would play the front 9 at 2-over. The difficult back 9 would also play tough for her with bogeys at Nos. 10, 12, 15, & 16.
For the second time, Coach Jim McGrew was announced as the SSAC Coach of the Year and sophomore Tia Teiniketo was announced as the SSAC Player of the Year.
UP NEXT
#2-ranked Dalton State will have time to rest and hone their skills before they take on the best in the county in the NAIA Championships at PGA National in West Palm Beach, Fla on May 22-25.