LAKE ELMO, Minn. – The No. 10 Sun Devil Women's Golf team completed the first round of the ANNIKA Intercollegiate presented by 3M at Royal Golf Club, marking the start of the 2019-20 season.
Riding a strong front nine and a spectacular hole-in-one on the 16th hole by Alessandra Fanali, the Sun Devils (E/268) find themselves tied for fifth with No. 3 Texas at the end of a competitive day one. Several members of the Arizona State lineup showed flashes of brilliance as they learn more about the course heading into day two.
Fanali's effort on the front nine earned the praise of her coach. "Alessandra played beautifully on the front side with an Ace on the 16th hole with a five iron," Coach Missy Farr-Kaye said following the round.
"We started off hot on the front side and struggled a little when the wind kicked up on the back side," Coach Farr-Kaye remarked when accessing her team's play.
Alessandra Fanali looked in midseason form right from the start, managing to earn a spot near the top of the leaderboard thanks in large part to her hole-in-one eagle on 16. Fanali (-4/68) is in a three-way tie for second place, with everyone chasing Wake Forest's Rachel Kuehn, who holds a one-stroke lead (-5/67).
FRONT NINE
Arizona State started their season on the 10th hole at Royal Golf Club. The Sun Devils found their groove early, jumping out to the lead after posting a nine-under as a team on the first nine holes. They recorded 11 birdies and one eagle, six of those coming from Alessandra Fanali. Fanali birdied her first two holes of the day and four of her first six to jump out to an early lead in the individual race. She then made history on the 16th hole, sinking the only ace of the day, registering an eagle. It was the first hole-in-one by a Sun Devil since teammate Raquel Olmos did it on the 13th hole in the second round of last years' Windy City Collegiate Championship (10/1/18). Despite it being her first tournament as a Sun Devil, Linn Grant showed the presence of a veteran. Grant had three birdies on the front nine, helping her finish two-under. The Maroon & Gold found success on the 18th hole giving them confidence as they made the turn, as four of five Sun Devils birdied the final hole on the front nine.
BACK NINE
As they made the turn, Alexandra Forsterling settled in admirably, leading to a solid back nine performance. She was one of three Sun Devils to make birdie on hole No. 2, her second birdie during a three-hole stretch. The sophomore finished at two-under on the back nine, the best score by a Sun Devil. Fanali put the finishing touches on one of her best rounds of her career, completing the day with a 68. It was her third-career round in the 60's and best round since shooting 67 in the Wildcat Invitational first round. She leads the way for the Sun Devils at the end of day one. Veterans Raquel Olmos and Olivia Mehaffey began to find their rhythm at the end of the round, with both gaining confidence heading into tomorrow by going even over the final four holes. Linn Grant (E/72) carded the second-best score on the team in her first collegiate round, good enough to earn her a tie for 15th. Arizona State recovered nicely after a sluggish start to the back nine, going even over the final four holes as a team.
UP NEXT
The teams at the ANNIKA Invitational will be treated to a Minnesota Twins vs. Chicago White Sox baseball game later this evening. The second day of the tournament will get underway tomorrow with teams starting their rounds from 6:30-8:00 a.m. (MST). The five Sun Devils will begin their round at 6:30 a.m. MST, with Raquel Olmos getting the action going on the first hole. Arizona State will be paired with South Carolina and Texas.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Track the scores of your favorite Sun Devils on Golfstat at the following link. Stay tuned to our social media platforms (@SunDevilWGolf) and our website (thesundevils.com) for the latest information and updates after each day of the tournament. For more behind-the-scenes coverage, follow the ANNIKA Foundation twitter page (@ANNIKA_Fdn).
Riding a strong front nine and a spectacular hole-in-one on the 16th hole by Alessandra Fanali, the Sun Devils (E/268) find themselves tied for fifth with No. 3 Texas at the end of a competitive day one. Several members of the Arizona State lineup showed flashes of brilliance as they learn more about the course heading into day two.
Fanali's effort on the front nine earned the praise of her coach. "Alessandra played beautifully on the front side with an Ace on the 16th hole with a five iron," Coach Missy Farr-Kaye said following the round.
No. 9 Wake Forest is the clubhouse leader after posting a 282 (-6) followed by No. 18 Arkansas (-5/283), while No. 12 Arizona (-3/285) and No. 14 South Carolina (-2/286) represent the rest of the Top-5, with the Sun Devils sitting in a tie for fifth.SHE IS ON FIRE! ??????
— Sun Devil W. Golf (@SunDevilWGolf) September 16, 2019
A HOLE IN ONE ON 16 FOR ALESSANDRA FINALI!
The sophomore is now ?6? through the first 7? holes and on top of the leaderboard! #ForksUp https://t.co/W6gE7PNJLr
"We started off hot on the front side and struggled a little when the wind kicked up on the back side," Coach Farr-Kaye remarked when accessing her team's play.
| ANNIKA Intercollegiate Team Leaderboard | |||
| Pos | Team | To Par | Total |
| 1 | Wake Forest | -6 | 282 |
| 2 | Arkansas | -5 | 283 |
| 3 | Arizona | -3 | 285 |
| 4 | South Carolina | -2 | 286 |
| T5 | Arizona State | E | 288 |
| T5 | Texas | E | 288 |
| T7 | USC | +3 | 291 |
| T7 | UCLA | +3 | 291 |
| 9 | Duke | +4 | 292 |
| 10 | Alabama | +7 | 295 |
| 11 | Virginia | +17 | 305 |
| 12 | Minnesota | +20 | 308 |
Alessandra Fanali looked in midseason form right from the start, managing to earn a spot near the top of the leaderboard thanks in large part to her hole-in-one eagle on 16. Fanali (-4/68) is in a three-way tie for second place, with everyone chasing Wake Forest's Rachel Kuehn, who holds a one-stroke lead (-5/67).
| ANNIKA Intercollegiate Individual Leaderboard | ||||
| Pos | Individual | Team | To Par | Total |
| 1 | Rachel Kuehn | WF | -5 | 67 |
| T2 | Alessandra Fanali | ASU | -4 | 68 |
| T2 | Vivian Hou | ARIZ | -4 | 68 |
| T2 | Kajal Mistry | ARK | -4 | 68 |
FRONT NINE
Arizona State started their season on the 10th hole at Royal Golf Club. The Sun Devils found their groove early, jumping out to the lead after posting a nine-under as a team on the first nine holes. They recorded 11 birdies and one eagle, six of those coming from Alessandra Fanali. Fanali birdied her first two holes of the day and four of her first six to jump out to an early lead in the individual race. She then made history on the 16th hole, sinking the only ace of the day, registering an eagle. It was the first hole-in-one by a Sun Devil since teammate Raquel Olmos did it on the 13th hole in the second round of last years' Windy City Collegiate Championship (10/1/18). Despite it being her first tournament as a Sun Devil, Linn Grant showed the presence of a veteran. Grant had three birdies on the front nine, helping her finish two-under. The Maroon & Gold found success on the 18th hole giving them confidence as they made the turn, as four of five Sun Devils birdied the final hole on the front nine.
BACK NINE
As they made the turn, Alexandra Forsterling settled in admirably, leading to a solid back nine performance. She was one of three Sun Devils to make birdie on hole No. 2, her second birdie during a three-hole stretch. The sophomore finished at two-under on the back nine, the best score by a Sun Devil. Fanali put the finishing touches on one of her best rounds of her career, completing the day with a 68. It was her third-career round in the 60's and best round since shooting 67 in the Wildcat Invitational first round. She leads the way for the Sun Devils at the end of day one. Veterans Raquel Olmos and Olivia Mehaffey began to find their rhythm at the end of the round, with both gaining confidence heading into tomorrow by going even over the final four holes. Linn Grant (E/72) carded the second-best score on the team in her first collegiate round, good enough to earn her a tie for 15th. Arizona State recovered nicely after a sluggish start to the back nine, going even over the final four holes as a team.
"There is a lot of golf left, but overall it was a good start for us," Coach Farr-Kaye observed.Round 1? at the 2019 ANNIKA Intercollegiate has come to a close #ANNIKAInter
— Sun Devil W. Golf (@SunDevilWGolf) September 16, 2019
Great start to the year by sophomore Alessandra Fanali, who cards the second-lowest round of her career! #ForksUp pic.twitter.com/qPhTh4M9R2
UP NEXT
The teams at the ANNIKA Invitational will be treated to a Minnesota Twins vs. Chicago White Sox baseball game later this evening. The second day of the tournament will get underway tomorrow with teams starting their rounds from 6:30-8:00 a.m. (MST). The five Sun Devils will begin their round at 6:30 a.m. MST, with Raquel Olmos getting the action going on the first hole. Arizona State will be paired with South Carolina and Texas.
| PAIRING | Arizona State, South Carolina, Texas |
| HOLE | 1 |
| TIME (MST) | GOLFER |
| 6:30 A.M. | Raquel Olmos |
| 6:40 A.M. | Olivia Mehaffey |
| 6:50 A.M. | Alexandra Forsterling |
| 7:00 A.M. | Linn Grant |
| 7:10 A.M. | Alessandra Fanali |
HOW TO FOLLOW
Track the scores of your favorite Sun Devils on Golfstat at the following link. Stay tuned to our social media platforms (@SunDevilWGolf) and our website (thesundevils.com) for the latest information and updates after each day of the tournament. For more behind-the-scenes coverage, follow the ANNIKA Foundation twitter page (@ANNIKA_Fdn).