And at the end of the day, or round, that's really what matters.
The Central Michigan women's golf team is set to open the spring portion of its 2021-22 season on Monday at the Mid-American Conference Match Play Challenge at Lakewood Ranch Golf & Country Club.
The Chippewas open the two-day, 12-team event with a quarterfinal match against either Bowling Green or Western Illinois. The tournament concludes on Tuesday.
CMU is coming off a blockbuster fall during which it won three of the five tournaments it entered, posted a second-place finish and a third, and set a bevy of team and individual scoring records.
Coach Jim Earle's Chippewas are ranked 140th nationally (there are 259 Division I women's teams) and, as such, are the No. 1 seed for the challenge.
The Chippewas have never been seeded higher than No. 11 for their annual spring opener, and the fact that they are is a good indication of how far the program has come in a relatively short period under Earle, who took the reins before the 2018-19 season.
The eight-player roster comprises exclusively underclassmen who have done nothing but draw raves since arriving on campus.
All that said, the game is played on grass and not paper.
"That (top seed) sort of comes with the territory with having the fall that we did," said Earle, whose team finished fifth of 11 teams in the challenge a year ago, when the format was changed to stroke play because of COVID. "It was an exceptional five-tournament stretch. There's going to be expectations after you play that way.
"We're not the No. 1 seed just because; it's because of this team and their talent and their work and how they've performed."
Which is, any way you look at it, awfully good. Seven of the eight players on the roster posted a stroke average of 78.27 or better during the five fall events, led by freshman Casilda Allendesalazar, who averaged 75.21 and won or shared medalist honors in two fall events.
Four others – Zoe Vartyan, Ashley Goh, Claudia Salvador and Padgett Chitty – posted averages of 76.29 or better, while diminutive gamer Rachel Kauflin went unbeaten (5-0) in match play during the 2020-21 season, helping lead CMU to a pair of match-play titles.
The Chippewas, at the time severely hampered by COVID issues, finished 10th at the MAC Championships a year ago. With a full and healthy lineup, they appear poised to vastly improve their standing when the dust settles and the sun sets after the league tournament in late April.
CMU will get a good indication where it falls in the pecking order next week. The challenge field includes eight of their MAC brethren.
"I think we're putting together a heck of a lineup to compete in this tournament," Earle said. "And they're excited to get out there and just tee it up against somebody.
"I don't think you can look past anybody, especially in match play and anything can happen. Last spring, we were undefeated in match play and that was without two of our top players. I think we're going to be a tough team to beat."
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February 05, 2022 at 11:49PM
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Women's Golf Opens Season Filled With High Expectations - Central Michigan University Chippewas
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