Centennial Conference Championship Website

GETTYSBURG, Pa. – The Gettysburg College women's golf team will defend its Centennial Conference title this weekend when it serves as host of the conference tournament at the Hanover Country Club in Abbottstown, Pa.
 
The Centennial championship has been a two-team race over the last four seasons and that trend will likely continue at HCC. Gettysburg and McDaniel College have combined for the last four titles and the rivals are the odds-on favorites to take the crown once again.
 
The two teams feature nine of the top 10 individual scorers in the conference this season. In team scoring, the Bullets lead the Green Terror by nearly 15 strokes per round. The next closest team average to the top two is owned by Dickinson College – 30 strokes behind McDaniel.
 
Last season, the title came down to the wire with a birdie chip-in by Gettysburg junior Molly Nulty securing a two-stroke victory for the Bullets. Gettysburg also won in 2008, while McDaniel claimed titles in 2009 and 2010. The Green Terror leads the CC with six team championships.
 
Consistency has been the name of the game for Gettysburg. Over nine rounds of play, the team owns an average of 351.7 strokes – nine strokes better than the previous school record. Only 11 strokes separate the squad's best round of the season (347) from its worst round (358).
 
Sophomore Kara McNulty has been dueling with McDaniel's Morgan Koopman all season long for the top scoring average in the conference. Entering the final weekend of play, Koopman currently leads McNulty by 0.02 strokes.
 
McNulty, who is currently half a stroke ahead of Gettysburg's single-season record for scoring average, earned All-CC recognition last spring by finishing in a tie for fourth with Nulty. Senior Caroline Nathan ranks third with a career-low 85.3. She is a two-time all-conference performer, including medalist honors in 2009 and runner-up last spring.
 
Lauren Sobotka is the top newcomer in the conference and ranks fourth overall with an average of 89.4 strokes per round. Nulty is right behind in sixth at 90.6 and senior Shelby Glass fills out the lineup with a scoring average of 94.6 to sit 10th in the conference heading into the weekend.
 
In addition to Koopman, who has carded a conference-best 78 twice this season, McDaniel is led by Alise McNutt and Katie Pass. McNutt is seventh in scoring at an even 92 strokes, while Pass rates ninth at 94.5
 
Swarthmore College's lone representative, Amanda Beebe, is the only competitor not from Gettysburg or McDaniel that ranks in the top 10 in scoring this season. Beebe is fifth overall with a scoring average of 89.8. Muhlenberg College freshman Christina Bryde is another competitor to keep an eye on after finishing top 10 in her only two collegiate events, including finishing tied for first with an 84 at the Ursinus Invitational.
 
Opening tee time at HCC are set for noon on Saturday, April 28. Sunday will also feature a noon start with awards presented after the conclusion of play.