The Navy women’s golf team achieved their lowest-ever three-round score in Patriot League Championship history, finishing in fourth place at the 2023 Patriot League Championship on Sunday. The tournament was held at the Independence Golf Club in Midlothian, Virginia.
Mara Hirtle led the team with a ninth-place finish at 5-over par 221. The team, collectively, posted a 32-over par 896 score over the weekend’s 54 holes, finishing just one stroke behind third-place Lehigh (31-over par 895). The 896 score broke the previous championship low of 43-over par 907, set by the team as runner-up in the 2019 league championship.
“We had many great scores to finish with our best three-day total of any Patriot League Championship to date,” said head coach Nadia Ste-Marie. “To finish in fourth speaks volumes to the strength of our conference. We have had a record-breaking season, and we are proud of our team and what we were able to accomplish this season.”
After an opening round of 306, the team rebounded with the third-lowest overall team round in program history at 4-over par 292 in a second round that was suspended midway through on Saturday and resumed Sunday. The Mids then closed out the weekend with a 298 score in the final round on Sunday.
The host Richmond Spiders won the league title with a championship-record 10-over par 874, closing it out with a weekend-low of 287. Boston claimed second at 26-over par 890, while Lehigh and Navy were followed by fifth-place Bucknell (43-over par 907) and sixth-place Holy Cross (83-over par 947).
Individual medalist honors went to Boston’s Chirsty Chen with another championship record of 4-under par 212. Richmond’s Vicky Zhu (217), Olivia Wilkie (218), and Rory Weinfurther (218) claimed spots on the All-Patriot League First Team alongside BU’s Alice Fan (219) and Lehigh’s Yuki Zhu (219). Paige Ritcher (220) of Bucknell, Lehigh’s Madison Pineda (220), and Richmond’s Lauren Jones joined Hirtle with all-league second-team honors.
Hirtle responded after a 76 first-round score to shoot 71 and 74 over the event’s final two days for a career-best PL Championship score of 221.
Freshman Sue Lee used a career-low round of 70 in Sunday’s final 18 holes to pull herself into 11th overall at 8-over par 224, falling one stroke short of an All-PL Second Team nod after shooting 81 and 73 in the opening two rounds.
Senior captain Eve Worden placed 12th in the field with a 10-over par 226 score in her final collegiate event, shooting rounds of 75, 74, and 77. Tying for 18th was sophomore Bridget Hoang, who shot 79-74-77 over her three rounds for a total score of 14-over par 230.
Junior Stephanie Lee finished 21st at 17-over par 233 after shooting a 76 opening round followed by rounds of 77 and 80, while freshman Hallie Brisco rounded out the Navy lineup by shooting a 20-over par 236 (81-78-77) to tie for 23rd.
Overall, the Navy women’s golf team had a successful season and broke several records during the Patriot League Championship. The team’s future looks promising, and they will continue to strive for success in the upcoming seasons.