Golf to Host 2024 Clash at Boulder Creek

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (Oct 18, 2024) - The Northern Arizona women's golf team will head to Boulder City, Nev. to host their annual Fall event - The Clash at Boulder Creek. The tournament spans three days, with 18 holes being played on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 20-22. The Boulder Creek course has three lots of nine holes, but the tournament will be played on the Desert Hawk and Coyote Run courses totaling at 6,334 yards.

In the 2023 edition of the tournament, the Lumberjacks made history, setting a new program record low for 18 holes by three shots with a score of 275 (-13) in the second round. All five players in the lineup shot an under-par round.

Lizzie Neale tied the individual program low with an outstanding score of 67 (-5) to be the fourth Lumberjack in program history to shoot a 67. Ellena Slater shot a stellar 68 (-4). Frankie Dezis and former Lumberjack Lorel Hayward both shot rounds of 70 (-2) followed by Amy Hodgkins with 71 (-1). 

The 'Jacks were able to replicate their second-round score on the final day, shooting another -13 (275) and finishing third at The Clash at Boulder Creek with a new program record for 54 holes. Neale, Hodgkins and Dezis all shot rounds of 68 (-4) and Slater went -1 with a 71.

This year's lineup will include the same players, but with Freshman Sumin Kang replacing the graduated Hayward. Ava Bates and Nina Lukyanenko will compete as individuals. 

The Desert Hawk nine has elements of desert and oasis themes, with water features on the first and ninth holes, and will be classed as the front-nine in the tournament. Players have the opportunity to hit big drives and will be tested by hitting their approach shots to the correct side of the green. The other nine, the Coyote run, requires players to be more strategic with their tee shots to avoid the meandering arroyos. 

The Lumberjacks are fresh from their previous tournament this week in South Carolina. They rounded out the Edisto Island Invitational with a final score of +15 to take second place and achieve their highest team finish of 2024 so far. Four of the five starting lineup players finished in the top 15. Slater was named part of the all-tournament team, shooting rounds of 72, 71, and 72 for a fifth-place finish individually.

Teams participating in the Clash at Boulder Creek include: Boise State, CSU Bakersfield, CSU Fullerton, Drake, Fresno State, Illinois State, Incarnate Word, Northern Colorado, San Francisco, South Dakota State, Southern Utah, Tarleton State, UC Riverside, UTEP, UTRGV and Washington State.

Tee times will start at 11:30 a.m. Mountain Standard time in a shot-gun fashion for the first round on Sunday. The second and third rounds will also be a shotgun start, beginning at 8 a.m. MST.

Live stats will be available on Leaderboard through Clippd. 

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