LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla. – Led by strong performances up and down the lineup, the FGCU women's golf team earned two wins on Monday to advance to the semifinals of the Mid-American Match Play Challenge at Lakewood Ranch Golf & Country Club.
 
The 5th-seeded Eagles swept 12th-seeded Fort Wayne in the morning round, 5-0, before downing 4th-seeded Eastern Michigan in nearly equally dominant fashion, 4-0-1, in the afternoon quarterfinal round.
 
Megan Blonien, Kate Williamson, Kelsy Holbert and Ailsa Clark each won both of their matches, while Madeline Marck-Sherk won her first and finished all square in her second. Clark and Holbert were especially instrumental in the match with Eastern Michigan as the two went out early and picked up a pair of crucial wins to set the tone before Williamson gave the Eagles the win with a 35-foot birdie on 17.
 
"I am very pleased with our play today," stated head coach Sarah Trew. "This morning was a huge boost to our confidence by sweeping Fort Wayne. Everyone played very steady across the board. In the afternoon, we knew we would have a tough task as Eastern Michigan is a very good team. Ailsa and Kelsy did a great job of going out and getting us two big wins. The rest of the matches came down to the wire, but we played solid to come out ahead.
 
"Tomorrow we will play another quality opponent in Lamar, but our girls are firing on all cylinders and I expect some good matches," Trew continued. "We are in a very good place right now confidence-wise."
 
Playing out of the No. 1 spot in Trew's lineup, Blonien (Altus, Okla./Oklahoma State/Altus HS) started her day by matching Fort Wayne's No. 1 each of the first four holes before playing the next seven holes at 4-under par, winning six of those and taking a commanding lead which would eventually yield a 6&5 victory.
 
In the afternoon, Blonien stormed back after going down 3 just six holes into her match with Kelsey Murphy. The redshirt senior was still down 3 heading to the 12th tee, but won that hole with a par and trimmed the deficit to just 1 with another par on the 13th. Another par on the par-4 16th squared the match, and a birdie on the par-3 17th put her 1 up with just the par-5 18th remaining. Blonien and Murphy both made pars as Blonien capped an impressive closing stretch by winning four of the final seven holes to secure the victory.
 
Williamson (Deerfield Beach, Fla./Archbishop McCarthy HS) raced out to a 3-up lead after just four holes in her opening match, made the turn up 4 and didn't drop a single hole coming in as she cruised to a 4&3 win. Against Eastern Michigan's Thelma Beck in the quarterfinals, the match was all square heading to 16. But Williamson won the 16th with a par and rolled in the match-winning birdie on 17 to finish 2 up.
 
Holbert (Lutz, Fla./Steinbrenner HS) was locked in a battle with Jenna Kurosky in the opening match, but a birdie on the 16th broke an all-square match. Holbert held on for the 1-up win with a par on 17 and another birdie on 18. Against Eastern Michigan, Holbert dominated, rolling to an impressive 8&6 triumph over Kristuda Apiwatthanadol. Up just 1 through four holes, the sophomore won seven of the next eight holes en route to the largest margin of victory by any of the 60 players in the 12-team field.
 
Despite playing just 12 holes in her second match of the day, Holbert finished with the 2nd-most birdies in the field on Monday with seven, one shy the eight recorded by Oakland's Morgan Smith.
 
Clark (Navarre, Fla./Navarre HS) also got off to a fast start in her first match, winning six of the first eight holes – three with birdies – and eventually went up 7 after another birdie on the par-4 10th. Linnzie Richner won three of the next four holes, but Clark easily held on for a 4&3 win. In the afternoon, the freshman made the turn 2 up, but quickly won holes 11, 12 and 13 to go 5 up and finish with a 5&4 triumph.
 
Marck-Sherk (Ridgeway, Ontario/Ridgeway Crystal Beach HS) had little trouble in her opening match, rolling to a 6&5 win over Paige Bird. In her second match, Marck-Sherk and Penelope Guilleux were never separated by more than a 1-up lead either way. The two were all square through six holes before Guilleux took a lead at 7 which Marck-Sherk immediately responded to by winning 8. Guilleux went back ahead on 10, but Marck-Sherk won the 12th and 13th holes with birdies to go 1 up. However, Guilleux bounced back with a win on hole 14, and the two matched each other coming down the stretch to finish all square.
 
Despite halving the match, Marck-Sherk finished tied for the 3rd-most birdies in the field with six over the two rounds. Williamson also had six birdies, while Clark secured five. Blonien made four birdies, and avoided big numbers thanks to 23 pars – tied for the 3rd-most in the field.
 
FGCU will now face top-seeded Lamar in the semifinals on Tuesday morning. Lamar received a bye into the quarterfinals and defeated 8th-seeded Ohio, 3-1-1. The Eagles and the Cardinals are scheduled to tee off in 7-minute intervals off the 1st tee beginning at 7:50 a.m.
 
With a win, the Green and Blue will advance to the final where they will face either 3rd-seeded Akron or 7th-seeded Oakland. With a loss, they will face one of those two teams in the 3rd-place match Tuesday afternoon. Live scoring is available via Golfstat by clicking here.
 
FIRST ROUND: 5-0-0 WIN AGAINST 12th-SEEDED FORT WAYNE
1. Megan Blonien def. Madison Chesnutt: 6&5
2. Kate Williamson def. Monica Dorner: 4&3
3. Madeline Marck-Sherk def. Paige Bird: 6&5
4. Kelsy Holbert def. Jenna Kurosky: 1UP
5. Ailsa Clark def. Linnzie Richner: 4&3
 
QUARTERFINALS: 4-0-1 WIN AGAINST 4th-SEEDED EASTERN MICHIGAN
1. Megan Blonien def. Kelsey Murphy: 1UP
2. Kate Williamson def. Thelma Beck: 2&1
3. Madeline Marck-Sherk vs. Penelope Guilleux: AS
4. Kelsy Holbert def. Kristuda Apiwatthanadol: 8&6
5. Ailsa Clark def. Maria Connelly: 5&4
 
COACH TREW
Head coach Sarah Trew recently is currently in her 6th season at the helm of the FGCU women's golf team after being named ASUN Coach of the Year in 2016. Trew took over in 2011 and has since guided the Eagles to the program's best-ever finish in the ASUN Tournament and to 20+ top-10 finishes. A year ago, Trew led the team to several records on and off the course. The 2013-14 squad set a new single-season scoring record with a team average of 307.88, while also setting a new benchmark academically. The spring of 2015 saw the Eagles again take third place at the ASUN Championship, and recording their best team score of the season while 2016 again set a new standard. The 2015-16 squad recorded a new program best with a 305.29 average and took a second-place finish at the conference tournament. In that event, the Eagles carded a team score of 290 to set the program's new record and earned the top finish in program history.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU women's golf program, follow on Twitter at @FGCU_WGolf and on Facebook at /FGCUWGolf.