Golf team closes out fall season

The Montana women's golf team will wrap up its fall schedule next week when the Grizzlies compete at the three-day Little Rock Women's Golf Classic at Diamante Country Club in Hot Springs Village, Ark.

The tournament will be the fifth of five fall meets for the Grizzlies, who are coming off a 15th-place finish, out of 15 teams, at their last outing at the Pat Lesser Harbottle Invitational.

"We want to get back out there and compete again," said second-year coach Matt Higgins, "especially after Seattle. That left a bad taste in our mouths. We want another chance to show what kind of team we are."

After playing in only two-day tournaments to this point, with 36 holes on day one and 18 on day two, the Little Rock Golf Classic will open on Sunday and go through Tuesday, with 18 holes each day.

"It gives you a little more rest, and if we need to hit some balls or hit some putts after our rounds, and work on some issues that might have come up, we can do that," said Higgins.

"When you open with 36 holes, it's dark by the time you're done, and you don't have enough time to work on things. This way makes it a little longer on the travel, but I kind of like the format."

Montana will compete with a lineup of junior Kari Opatz, junior Hailey Hoagland, sophomore Baylee Barckley, freshman Teigan Avery and redshirt freshman Abby Pfeifer.

Opatz (76.75), Hoagland (77.25) and Avery (79.00) lead the Grizzlies in scoring average this fall. Hoagland led Montana at its first two tournaments. Opatz was the team's low scorer at its last two and has six straight rounds of 78 or better, with a fall-best 73 to close out the last tournament.

Pfeifer will be making her fall debut in the team's top five. She competed as an individual at the team's season opener, the Washington State Cougar Cup, for her only other collegiate experience.

"Abby's been our low qualifier our last three qualifying rounds. I'm excited to get her in there and see how she can help," said Higgins. "She's probably the longest hitter on our team."

Next week's tournament comes after a three-week break from competition, which was badly needed. The first four tournaments came in a tight 23-day window.

"I don't think I'll do that again," said Higgins. "We really didn't have any practice time in those four weeks.

"We took five days completely off after our last tournament, because anytime you go four weeks in a row, you need a break. They came back rested and refreshed, and there was a little more purpose behind our practices, a little more focus. That's what some rest will do."

No one was more in need of a reset than Barckley, who tied for fifth last spring at the Big Sky Conference championship. The sophomore carded uncharacteristic scores in the 80s in eight of nine rounds in the team's last three tournaments before its break from competition.

"Getting some more practice time has allowed us to work some things out," said Higgins. "I think it really benefitted Baylee, because she was going through a swing issue.

"She's back to hitting the ball really well. She qualified really low. I'm looking forward to some good things from her this weekend."

The Little Rock Golf Classic will feature 16 teams from nine states and will wrap up Montana's fall schedule.

The Grizzlies won't compete again until the Battle at the Rock, in Riverside, Calif., in mid-February.

"If we can put together a strong tournament, it will send us into winter even more motivated," said Higgins. "It will be important to build some confidence this weekend and go into winter knowing what we need to work on."

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Players Mentioned

Teigan Avery

Baylee Barckley

Hailey Hoagland

Kari Opatz

Abby Pfeifer

University of Montana Athletics