KSU’s women’s golf team has had a notable season thus far, and they are hoping to continue their momentum as they gear up for the Insperity Lady Jaguar Intercollegiate tournament in Augusta, GA., on March 16.
The Owls started the spring season by finishing 10th at the UCF Challenge and 13th in the Allstate Sugar Bowl Intercollegiate in February.
Although placing 13th in the Sugar Bowl Intercollegiate, the Owls were able to hang tough with 12 top-50 ranked teams.
The Owls are entering Augusta with poise after finishing fourth at the Hurricane Invitational in Miami on March 6, which was also their first top-10 finish this spring.
Head coach Rhyll Brinsmead is impressed by her team’s performance to this point and is confident in her current roster.
“We have got a lot more depth this year, and we’ve got eight on the roster compared to six last year,” Brinsmead said. “It’s a pretty exciting time to be part of this team.”
Coach Brinsmead is also confident she has the team to win the Atlantic-Sun Conference
The conference championship this year will take place in April. The Owls finished third overall in the previous A-Sun Championship.
“This team is very focused not only on the A-Sun but NCAA post-season play as well,” Brinsmead said. “We’ve got something to prove. That has been our goal to come away with an Atlantic Sun Championship and I have the team to do it.”
The two new players added to the roster in the spring were Freshmen Kaew Preamchuen, from Thailand and Ines Lescudier, who is also a transfer student from Tulane University.
Coach Brinsmead mentioned they have added much needed depth to the roster. Preamchuen, who was named the Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the week after her top-10 finish at the Hurricane Invitational last week, has enjoyed being an Owl this season.
“It is my first semester playing for a college and it has been a lot of fun,” said Preamchuen.
For the remainder of the season, Preamchuen plans to continue to work hard and is striving to become the freshman player of the year.
As for the upcoming Lady Jaguar Intercollegiate and the remaining tournaments, Preamchuen’s game plan consists of focusing on one shot at a time.
“I plan on paying attention to every shot and every shot is very important to me,” Preamchuen said.
Among the returning players this season is junior Ket Preamchuen, who will be the no. 3 player in the lineup for KSU going into Augusta.
Preamchuen, who was a two-time A-Sun Conference Player of the week last year, plans to up her play despite a slow start this spring.
“It is kind of a slow start this semester, but I have two more tournaments to make it happen,” Preamchuen said.
With both Preamchuen sisters on the roster, it has been helpful to the team and an enjoyable experience so far, especially for Ket Preamchuen.
“It has been fun, and it is like I have one more close friend added to the team,” Preamchuen said.
The Owls will be amongst a 14-team field in the Lady Jaguar Intercollegiate, which includes the no. 11 ranked powerhouse school of Purdue, which are also former national champions. Coach Brinsmead has been preparing her players by emphasizing a structured short-game in practices.
“The biggest difference between top-25 teams and us is the short-game,” Brinsmead said. “A lot of our practices are geared towards the individual needs of each player, and I also try to incorporate team goals as well, and the team has been responding well to that.”
Coach Brinsmead believes her players have not yet reached their full potential, and is confident her team will do well in Augusta.
“Our goal for each tournament is to come away with a win, but a lot of our play is based on the process and not the outcome,” Brinsmead said. “I am obviously confident in the team we have going to Augusta and we can come away with a win.”
