INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Austin Peay State University women's golf held strong for a runner-up finish at the Butler Fall Invitational, posting a final-round 290 at Highland Country Club to finish second.
The Govs (292-294-290) finished 10 shots ahead of third-place Loyola-Chicago and 16 ahead of both Akron and Ohio; the host Bulldogs won the event with an 856 (286-285-285). The Govs now have three consecutive top-three finishes as a team for the first time since a four-tournament stretch to open the 2023-24 season, which included three wins.
Austin Peay put two finishers in the top-10, with senior Jillian Breedlove leading the way once again. Breedlove's final-round 75 included eight pars on the front-nine; she led the tournament with 40 total pars in the 54-hole event, including 14 on the final day of play. She finished the tournament with a three-round 216 (69-72-75).
Sophomore Jordin Cowing made a strong move up the leaderboard on Tuesday, leading the Govs with a final-round 71 to finish tied for sixth overall at 217 (73-73-71). Cowing's 4.67 stroke average on par-5 holes was tied for the tournament lead, while her even-par 35 on the front-nine helped pace the Govs out to a strong start.
Both Breedlove and Cowing have now been top-20 finishers in all three stroke play tournaments for the Govs this season.
Senior Abby Hirtzel was the catalyst on the back-nine for the Govs on Tuesday, shooting an even-par 35 on the back to record a third-round 72; Hirtzel finished with a 221 (74-75-72) to finish 17th, her second-straight top-20 finish, aided by 38 pars (the fifth-highest total in the tournament).
Sophomore Ella Arnzen (79-74-74—227; t-31st) highlighted her final round with a birdie on the 398-yard par-4 at No. 10, one of just four birdies on the back-nine opener on Tuesday. Junior Abby Jimenez, whose second-round score was disqualified due to a scorecard error, rallied with a final-round 73
Playing as the individual, sophomore Makenna Cox tied for 25th with a 225 (80-69-76); she's now been in the top-25 in both tournaments she's played in this season.
"Coming home with some more hardware is really special," said Austin Peay head coach Jessica Combs. "Through three stroke play events, we are 44-3-1, and I am so proud of how the team is playing. Our stroke average is 291 which just speaks to how consistently each girl is playing. Jill and Jordin had a great showing in Indy this week, and I'm looking forward to see how we finish out our fall season next week in Arkansas. It'll be another good test with great competition."
The Govs are back in action next week, closing out the fall schedule with a visit to Jonesboro, Arkansas for the Lady Red Wolves Classic. First-round action begins Monday at Sage Meadows Country Club.
