FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. – The FGCU women's golf team carded team scores of 307 and 301 during the first two rounds of action at Jacksonville's Amelia Island Collegiate Monday, Feb. 22 at the Amelia Island Golf Club. With the two-round score, the Eagles hold 12th place in the field of 16 teams.
 
With the total 608 score, FGCU stands just three strokes out of a tie for eighth place and 14 strokes out of the top five. The University of North Florida leads the field with a two-round score of 575, with Bradley, Cincinnati, Campbell and Kennesaw State rounding out the top five. The four-way tie for eighth place includes Memphis, Georgia Southern, Jacksonville State and Southern Mississippi. The Eagles stand ahead of Wofford, Georgia State, host Jacksonville and Winthrop with one round remaining.
 
The Eagles opened play with a team score of 307 in the first round but followed with a 301 in the afternoon round to move to 12th overall at 608. The Eagles saw four scores under 80 in the afternoon session with three players improving between rounds.
 
"Today didn't go quite as planned," said head coach Sarah Trew after the two-round day. "However, the second round we got some things rolling and seemed to be back to our normal selves. I think we need to have more confidence in ourselves that we are capable of playing well. When we do that, we will put up the numbers we want."
 
Senior Mei Khuan Yong (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia/S.M.K. Cochrane) led the Green and Blue in the No. 1 position. Yong carded bogeys on her first two holes and added a double on 15 but rebounded with a birdie on 17 to make the turn of her morning round at plus-3. The senior shot seven holes at even par on her back 9 and put together birdies on 4 and 5 to cut her score to plus-1. She finished with a 73 to rank among the top-20 in the field after one round.
 
Yong followed with one of her best rounds of the year in carding a 71. She opened the round with a birdie and quickly moved to 2-under with birdies on two of her first three holes. Yong moved to even through seven holes but quickly responded with another birdie on hole 17. She took the turn at 1-under and finished the round with seven par holes in the last nine. Yong's total 144 places her sixth in the field of nearly 90 golfers with one round remaining.
 
Freshman Madeline Marck-Sherk (Ridgeway, Ontario/Ridgeway Crystal Beach High School) matched Yong's first-round score of 73 in the morning round. The rookie started strong with a birdie on her second hole and produced bogeys on 15 and 18 to take the turn at plus-1. Marck-Sherk stayed even on her back 9, with a bogey on 7 and a birdie on the final hole to finish even with Yong at 73.
 
In her afternoon round, Marck-Sherk started even through three holes but saw a double on 13 change the course of her round. She added strokes on 16 and took the turn at plus-3. The back 9 saw a birdie, a bogey and a double as the freshman finished the second round at plus-5. The score of 77 pushed March-Sherk to 33rd in the field with a total score of 150.
 
Transfer Megan Blonien (Altus, Okla./Altus High School/Oklahoma State) finished the two-round day in a tie at 50th. Blonien finished at plus-8 in the first round but rebounded with a plus-2 round in the afternoon. The junior carded two bogeys and two birdies through her first eight holes to take the turn with an even score. She added three more bogeys but finished with a birdie on her final hole to card a 74. Blonien's two-round score of 154 placed her near the top half of the field.
 
Madison Easterbrook (Burlington, Ontario/Aldershot High School) and Sara Detlefsen (Eagan, Minn./Minnesota Virtual Academy) rounded out the Eagle lineup during the first day of competition with two-round scores of 160 and 166, respectively. Easterbrook carded scores of 81 and 79, while Detlefsen finished at 81, 85.
 
Jacksonville's Amelia Island Collegiate concludes Tuesday, Feb. 23 with an 8:30 a.m. shotgun start. FGCU will pair with Jacksonville State and Southern Mississippi in the final round at Amelia Island Golf Club and will tee off on holes 10, 11 and 12. Live results will be available at GolfStat.com with complete details available at FGCUAthletics.com following the day's events.
 
INDIVIDUAL RESULTS
T6. Mei Khuan Yong 73-71-144
33. Madeline Marck-Sherk 73-77-150
T50. Megan Blonien 80-74-154
T69. Madison Easterbrook 81-79-160
83. Sara Detlefsen 81-85-166
 
COMPLETE TEAM RESULTS
1.North Florida 285-290-575
2.Bradley 294-290-584
3.Cincinnati 296-290-586
4.Campbell 295-296-591
5.Kennesaw State 298-305-594
6.Daytona State 300-296-596
7.Tulsa 300-301-601
T8.Memphis 303-302-605
T8.Georgia Southern 303-302-605
T8.Jacksonville State 301-304-605
T8.Southern Mississippi 303-302-605
12. FGCU 307-301-608
13. Wofford 302-312-614
14. Georgia State 305-311-616
15. Jacksonville 311-308-619
16. Winthrop 318-311-629