Women’s Golf Heads To Arizona For Rio Verde Invite

Duane Zehr, Bradley University ITPS

Rio Verde Invitational Live Scoring

Women's Golf 2/22/2018 10:30:00 AM

PEORIA, Ill. -- Bradley Women's Golf continues a busy week to open the 2018 Spring schedule which started Monday and Tuesday with the Amelia Island Collegiate in Fernandina Beach, Fla., by making its annual trip to Arizona for the 16th annual Rio Verde Invitational in Rio Verde, Ariz., Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

The Braves look to build on a strong finish from the spring opener after taking seventh at the Amelia Island Collegiate. The Rio Verde Invitational has been a frequent stop for Bradley with the Braves taking part in the tournament for the 15th consecutive season.

This year's Rio Verde Invitational makes a return to the par-72 Quail Run course at the Rio Verde Country Club after being played on the White Wing Course each of the last three seasons. BradleyBraves.com will provide links to live scoring for the 54-hole, three-day tournament which gets underway Friday with a 2 p.m. (CST) shotgun start. Both Saturday and Sunday's rounds will feature 9:30 a.m. (CST) shotgun starts.

The 17-team field includes Missouri Valley Conference rivals Illinois State and Missouri State along with former Valley member Wichita State. Eight Mid-American Conference members make up nearly half of the field including Akron, Ball State, Bowling Green Central Michigan, defending tournament champion Eastern Michigan, Northern Illinois, Ohio and tournament-host Western Michigan. One of two Big East teams in the tournament, Seton Hall is the highest ranked squad in the field at #88 in the latest Golfweek.com rankings and is joined by conference member Xavier. Arkansas State, Arkansas-Little Rock and UMKC make up the remainder of the field.

Sophomore Taylor Ledwein was named Missouri Valley Conference Golfer of the Week Wednesday after she tied for 23rd at the Amelia Island Collegiate in Bradley's spring opener. Ledwein tied for 60th at last year's Rio Verde Invitational, firing a second-round 73. She has carded 25 consecutive sub-80 rounds which is the second longest streak in school history behind Danielle Lemek's record of 32 consecutive rounds in the 70's or better that covered part of the 2013-14 season into the 2014-15 campaign.

Senior Ally Scaccia was 36th at the Amelia Island Collegiate earlier this week and has finished in the top 50 at the Rio Verde Invite each of the last two years. Scaccia's best finish at the Rio Verde Invitational was as a sophomore in 2015-16 when she tied for 44th. She owns a 77.89 career stroke average at Rio Verde Country Club. Scaccia enters the weekend third in school history in both career rounds played (112) and sub-80 rounds (85), needing two rounds and two scores in the 70's or better to move into a tie for second in both categories.

Fellow senior Grace Henderson has been Bradley's top finisher at the Rio Verde Invitational each of the last two seasons and has carded her season-low at the event in both 2017 and 2016. Henderson tied for 37th (229) last year and tied for 15th (224) as a sophomore. She owns a 75.50 career stroke average at Rio Verde.

Junior Frankie Saban tied Scaccia for 49th (232) at last year's Rio Verde Invitational, where she fired a career-best two-under 70 in the second round. Saban tied for 38th at the Amelia Island Collegiate to open the spring schedule and her 76.22 stroke average on the year is second on the team.

Fellow junior Brooke Thompson played as an individual at last year's Rio Verde Invite, finishing out the event with rounds of 79 and 77. She has appeared in the Bradley lineup in all six tournaments this season and her season average of 76.89 is nearly four-and-a-half strokes better than her career average entering the year.

Forced to withdraw from the final round of the Amelia Island Collegiate due to illness, junior Chloe Horton has played at Rio Verde each of her first two seasons and has carded four of her six career rounds in the event in the 70's.

The Braves will have a two-week break after the Rio Verde Invitational before hosting the Bradley Spring Break Invitational, March 12 & 13 in Farmers Branch, Texas.

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