Spring Break brought some mixed emotions for the Penn golf teams last week.
Both the men's and women's squads were in action, with the men's team competing in the Braveheart Classic in Beaumont, Calif., and the women's team travelling south to Florida for the Springlake Invitational.
The men's team finished 16th out of 17 teams and shot a team score of 970 (334-326-310), while the women's team finished tied for 8th out of 12 teams with a score of 622 (310-312).
While both performances seem to be mediocre at best, they were in no way similar. The men's team shot a first round of 334 with an 83 stroke average, while the women came out firing, as they shot a 310, the best score in team history.
The performances were not the only things drastically different about the teams. The weather for the men was brutal, with a constant 40 mile per hour wind, while the women played in calm, sunny weather in the Sunshine State. Coach Rob Powelson thought that had a big effect on the performance.
"This tournament wasn't a reflection of where we are as a team right now, just of the sheer fact that the conditions on the first day were really bad. After round one, scores came down, but the score of 334 was just too high to overcome."
There were some positives for the men, however - and as the conditions improved, so did the Quakers. Powelson felt that his team got into a solid rhythm and eventually found their comfort level.
This was the first tournament for both teams, and they are still trying to get back on track as they prepare for the culmination of their season at the Ivy Championships.
"For us, it was a way to get the icicles off and get focused for the George Washington Invitational [on March 24 and 25]," Powelson said.
Even though the women's team only finished in 8th place, its performance was nothing to scoff at. Not only did the Quakers shoot the best round in team history, they backed that up with the best overall two-day score as well.
"I think we have probably our most talented team," said coach Francis Vaughn. "The three freshman that we play in our starting lineup are extremely talented."
One of those three, Lisette Vitter, was the first person ever to shoot under par in a tournament round with a score of 71 (-1).
The team's previous best score had been even par. Vitter finished third overall with an even par score of 144 (71-73).
"It was exciting for everyone and it was nice to see the team do well and continue to improve, putting up some numbers we haven't seen before," Vaughn said. "I was obviously very happy with our performance."
