For her first career appearance at the NCAA Championships, sophomore golfer Caroline Powers will represent MSU at the championships starting Wednesday in Bryan, Texas. Entering the competition, she is ranked No. 27 in the nation by Golfweek.
The tournament will be played at the Traditions Club — a par-72 course home to Texas A&M — where MSU played in the NCAA Preview event in September.
While the Spartans placed 11th at the NCAA East Regional in Daytona Beach, Fla., Powers qualified for nationals by tying for sixth, shooting a 1-over 217 for 54 holes. Her total was the lowest ever scored by a Spartan in a regional competition.
In qualifying, Powers defeated Florida State’s Maria Salinas in a playoff for the last bid to the championships. She came out on top by shooting par on the first hole of the playoff.
“I’ve watched Caroline in quite a few tournaments now being under those pressure situations, and she’s really just a very cool player,” MSU head coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll said in a release from the MSU Athletics Department. “She doesn’t let anything bother her.
“She just gets into her own game and what she’s doing. Obviously, she does an exceptional job at that.”
Powers has maintained a scoring average 73.71, and if she remains consistent, she could set a new single-season record at MSU, which All-American and Big Ten Golfer of the Year Laura Kueny set last year at 73.85.
She earned her first victory at the Lady Buckeye Invitational on April 17 in Columbus, Ohio, and finished in the top 10 a total of six times. Additionally this season, in all but two tournaments, Powers led MSU with the highest finishing score.
“Every time Caroline tees it up, there’s something more exciting going on in her game,” Slobodnik-Stoll said. “She’s learning, and the scores are continually coming down.
“She has the ability to make putts when she really needs to, and she makes a lot of birdies. She makes enough good shots that she puts herself into birdie position constantly.”
In addition to Powers, the championship includes 24 teams and six individuals competing through Saturday. Her bid to nationals is the third time an individual will represent MSU at the competition.
“I’m approaching this with the same mindset I’ve had going into every other tournament,” Powers said in a statement from MSU. “Especially with the last few and being in contention down the stretch, I think that’s given me a better mindset on how to handle that.
“I’m ready to go and get 72 good holes in.”
Follow Powers throughout the championship
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