EAST GREENSBORO, North Carolina – The North Carolina A&T women’s golf who is making their first real transition in personnel since the program started three years ago, released their 2018-19 schedule on Monday.
The schedule includes 11 tournaments, four during the fall semester and seven more during the spring semester.
The Aggies open the season Sept. 24-25 at the Delaware State Invitational in Dover, Del. A week later they move on to the always challenging Starmount Fall Classic hosted by UNC Greensboro. The tournament normally features some of the top golf programs in the nation. N.C. A&T returns to the Starmount Fall Classic after competing there in 2016 but not 2017.
The fall semester closes out with the Aggies teeing it up at the Tiger Invitational hosted by Savannah State, Oct. 29-30 and the Oyster Chuck Match Play in Charleston, S.C.
2018-19 Women's Golf Schedule
“I know what we lost from last year,” said N.C. A&T coach Richard Watkins. “We lost some outstanding people and golfers from last year’s team. But that’s what happens when you have a program. Players are going to come and players are going to graduate. It’s up to us to put the foundation in place to where we stay competitive year after year. I think we’re doing that.”
N.C. A&T will take on their new schedule with three of their top golfers gone from the scorecards. Jill Harvison and Sofia Alvarez, junior college transfers, used up their eligibility last season while Bo Young Park transferred. The trio comprised the majority of the Aggies top-10 finishes over the first two years of the program’s existence with Alvarez earning two first-place finishes at tournaments last season.
Harvison had the Aggies lowest scoring average during the inaugural 2016-17 season and Park had three top-10 finishes including a third-place finish at the Tiger Fall Invitational in Savannah, Ga. Harvison, Alvarez and Park were also vital in the Aggies securing the first two tournament victories in program history last season.
While those players are no longer with the program, there are some stalwarts remaining in the program. Juniors Erica Johnson and Jocelyn Andrews have been with the program since Day 1 with both ladies showing tremendous improvement as sophomores. Sophomore Madison Harriman had a stellar freshman season where she showed signs of being able to shoot in the 70’s on a consistent basis.
In addition, Watkins added a big-time recruit that he pursued mightily in Atlanta freshman Christyn Carr. The Aggies also brought in junior college transfer Cheyanne Stewart out of Mesa, Ariz. With the new additions and the progress of the returners, the Aggies should be ready to compete for tournament titles during the spring.
The spring opens with the Aggies competing at the Oyster Chuck Match Play from Feb. 25-26. The Aggies came in second after entering play as the No. 6 seed. The Aggies will spend March 4-8 in Daytona Beach, Fla., as they will play in the LIU Invitational March 4-5 and the BCU Invitational March 7-8. The Bama Beach Bash will follow two weeks later before the Aggies take a month off from competition before competing in the Women In Golf Foundation Tournament April 27-28.
N.C. A&T’s two biggest tournaments close out the season. With no MEAC Championships in women’s golf, the MEAC Showcase in Savannah, Ga., is usually seen as the tournament that determines the best MEAC program among the five golf-playing schools. A year ago, the Aggies finished xx. This season’s showcase is April 19-20.
The PGA Minority Collegiate Golf Tournament is also an unofficial determinant of the best. As the top historically black universities vie to see who is superior at the Ryder Golf Course at the PGA Village in Port St. Lucie, Fla. The Aggies finished third last season.
Despite the losses of three outstanding players the Aggies will try to improve upon a season that included five second-place finishes and two third-place finishes to go along with the two tournaments they won.
NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
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