2018 WIAC Women's Golf Championship Preview

University of Wisconsin-Whitewater will strive for a second straight first-place finish at the 2018 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Women’s Golf Championship (Presented by Culver’s). The 23rd edition of the league event will be hosted by UW-Platteville and determined over 54 holes at Reedsburg Country Club in Reedsburg, Wis., Oct. 5-7. A shotgun start will commence at noon on Oct. 5, while flighted tee times will begin at 10 a.m. Oct. 6-7.
 
This marks the third consecutive year the facility has hosted the spectacle. The team winner will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Division III Championship that will be conducted May 14-17, 2019 in Houston, Texas.
 
The Warhawks’ title last season was the third in program history and first since 1999. They won the crown with 942 strokes to surpass the 959 strokes by UW-Stout. UW-Oshkosh placed third with 962 strokes, while UW-Eau Claire was fourth with 983, UW-Platteville fifth with 1,042, UW-River Falls sixth with 1,048 and UW-Stevens Point seventh with 1,114.
 
UW-Whitewater’s lineup is led by CheyAnn Knudsen, who claimed medalist honors at the conference championship a year ago. This season, she boasts a league-best 77.1 stroke average. Knudsen is joined by Ashley Hofmeister, who secured medalist honors at the 2016 championship and owns an 80.0 stroke average. She also took first place at the UW-Whitewater Fall Classic earlier this fall. Rounding out the Warhawks lineup will be Sabrina Schreck (80.6), Kelly Storti (82.8) and Maddie McCue (83.0).
 
UW-Stout owns three league championships and Madison McCambridge has a team-best 79.6 stroke average and took first place at the Division III Classic. Marie Allo possesses an 81.0 average per 18 holes and claimed medalist recognition at the UW-Stout Fall Invitational. The Blue Devils lineup is bolstered by Trystin Kluess (82.0), Alexa Filipiak (82.2) and Markie Ash (85.2).
 
UW-Oshkosh’s four WIAC crowns are the second-most in league history. This year’s squad is led by Hannah Braun and Kayla Priebe, who each own a 78.5 stroke average. Braun has recorded first-place finishes at the UW-Oshkosh Classic and UW-Stevens Point Mad Dawg Invitational. The Titans lineup will also include Erika Priebe (81.3), Margherite Pettenuzzo (81.9) and Anna Scheibe (85.5).
 
UW-Eau Claire boasts a conference-high nine league championships – with the most recent in 2013 – and is led by Allison Chomniak, who has an 80.9 stroke average and took first place at the Blugold Georgianni Invitational.
 
This year’s championship will mark the initial appearance by UW-La Crosse, which is in its first year of varsity competition since 1982-83. The Eagles are led by Chloe Volden’s 91.4 stroke average, while Sarah Faanes and Hannah Ottevaere each own a 91.8.
 
Additional WIAC regulars averaging round below 90 this fall include: UW-Eau Claire’s Jessica Rudnicki (89.6); UW-Oshkosh’s Hanna Rebholz (87.0) and Keara Richards (88.5); UW-River Falls’ Danielle DeWitt (85.2), Courtney Carson (88.1) and Paige Isensee (88.1); UW-Stevens Point’s Brooke Tuszka (89.5); UW-Stout’s Bailee Busan (85.9); and UW-Whitewater’s Kristin Bowe (83.0), Kaitlin Bowe (83.8) and Ashton Sinak (84.6).
 
UW-Platteville’s Alyssa Elko owns a team-best 94.8 strokes per round.
 

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