SMC Golf: Simmerman wins national championship
By JOE HETTLER
Sports Editor
Stefanie Simmerman's swing didn't feel quite right a few weeks before the Division III golf championships. But that feeling changed at just the right time for the Saint Mary's sophomore and her Belle teammates.
Simmerman fired a 23-over par 315 in four rounds to win the Division III individual national title and Saint Mary's placed fourth in the country at the par 73 Golf Club of Lawsonia in Green Hills, Wis. May 13-16.
"Coach [Mark Hamilton] and I have been working extremely hard the last couple weeks," Simmerman told The South Bend Tribune, "and the last couple days before I left for nationals, my trajectory, everything, was the best it's ever been."
Simmerman posted the best individual scores for each of the first two rounds to push the Belles as high as second-place. She shot 76-82-77-80 to finish four strokes ahead of her nearest competitor.
With her outstanding four-day performance, Simmerman gives Saint Mary's their first national championship, individual or team, in any sport in the history of the school. Simmerman also secured All-American honors, making her only the second player in Belles history to gain such an honor.
With two years left of eligibility, Simmerman will look to defend her national title next year as a junior.
All Sports Stories for Friday, July 11, 2003
