March 29, 2017

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SUNSET, S.C. -- The Tennessee women's golf team tees off their final regular season tournament of the spring in the second annual Clemson Invitational at the Reserve at Lake Keowee (par 72, 6,260 yards) in Sunset, S.C., on Friday, March 31 through Sunday, April 2.

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Tournament

Participating Teams: Clemson, Columbia, Florida State (4), Furman (8), Michigan State, Mississippi State, Ohio State, Texas A&M (18), Tulane, Florida (5), Houston, Louisville, UNC Wilmington, Oklahoma (22), Tennessee, Texas and Vanderbilt
Course: Reserve at Lake Keowee (par 72, 6,260 yards)
Round 1: 8:00 a.m. ET on March 31
Round 2: 8:00 a.m. ET on April 1
Round 3: 8:00 a.m. ET on April 2
Awards Presentation: Will follow conclusion of the final round
2016 Results: Team: Florida (861)

Tournament Info

Live Stats Team/Player Leaderboard

Tennessee

Roster Schedule Stats Record Book

The 17-team field includes three top 10 teams and seven top 30 teams according to the latest Golfweek/Sagarin rankings released on March 27. On an individual basis, 13 of the top 50, and 23 of the top 100 players in the nation according to the same Golfweek rankings will be playing the challenging par 72 layout at the Reserve at Lake Keowee.

The Lineup

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Senior Hannah Pietila finished the fall season by shooting below-par rounds on all three days of the Maryb S. Kauth Invitational en route to recording the Vols' lowest 54-hole score (209) and best placement (T-3rd) of the fall. Pietila carded 227 to tie for 62nd place and the Northrop Grumman Challenge and finished fourth at the AU vs. UT Challenge with a score of 149. Most recently, she tied for eighth place at the 3M Augusta Invitational with Warren to garner Co-SEC Player of the Week honors.
Boasting the lowest average on the 2016-17 squad, junior Blakesly Warren has posted 10 rounds of par or better, six top-25 finishes and four top-10 finishes this season. In the first round of the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship, she recorded a career-low 68 and carded her lowest tournament score (211) at the same event in September. On Feb. 26, Warren placed third at the Auburn vs. Tennessee Challenge to card her best finish of the year. Most recently, she tied for eighth place at the 3M Augusta Invitational with Pietila to garner Co-SEC Player of the Week honors.
The Northrop Grumman marked Lucia Polo's first collegiate tournament of the season. Polo, a senior, played in the Women's World Amateur Team Championship in the fall for Guatemala and shot rounds of 80-73-75-81 to place 96th. As an individual in the Auburn vs. Tennessee Challenge on Feb. 26, she placed in the top-10. Polo carded her third top-25 finish of the season at the 3M Augusta Invitational.
Freshman Micheala Williams has made an immediate impact for Tennessee. She's tallied five rounds of par or better and three top-15 finishes, including a fourth place finish, through eight tournaments.
Senior Teleri Hughes played in three tournaments during the fall to average 76.33 strokes per round. At the Maryb S. Kauth Invitational, she tied for 34th place after shooting 221. Hughes notched her first top-15 finish of the season at the Auburn vs. Tennessee Challenge, placing 11th at with a 36-hole total of 158.

Tournament Format

The Clemson Invitational will be played on Friday, March 31 through Sunday, April 2 in an 18-18-18 format.

The three-day tournament gets underway Friday morning at 8:00 a.m. ET. Saturday's second round will also start at 8:00 a.m. ET, with each team beginning on Hole 1.

Round three on Sunday will start at 8:00 a.m. ET from Nos. 1 and 10. The awards ceremony will be held upon the conclusion of the round.

Live stats will be available at golfstat.com and results will be posted to the tournament central page and twitter at the conclusion of each round.

Tournament Notes

Tennessee is playing in the Clemson Invitational for the second year in a row.
Last season, UT placed 10th in the event with scores of 291-301-298 for an overall total of 890.
The Jack Nicklaus-designed course opened in 2002. It has been the site of many major events, including one of the courses for the Web.com's BMW Charity Pro-Am.
Florida State (4), Florida (5) and Furman (8) will be the three top 10 teams at this year's event.

Quick Drives

Tennessee's top scorers, Warren, Newell and Williams, have a combined fall scoring average of 72.17 and boast 57 rounds of par or better, 44 top-25 finishes and 18 sub-70 rounds during their careers.
Williams low round of 67 on Day Two of the Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invite marked the lowest 18-hole score of the fall and ranks ninth in Tennessee history.
On the season, the Vols, led by Head Coach Judi Pavon and her staff, are averaging 293.96 strokes per round and finished in the top five in six tournaments so far this season.
In November, Tennessee signed three of the top-50 players in the 2017 signing class: No. 10 Kristin Engle (early enrollee), No. 19 Waverly Whiston and No. 50 Mariah Smith.

Folds of Honor

Tennessee Women's Golf has partnered with Folds of Honor (FOH) through the WGCA to carry a specially designed golf bag to honor Army Staff Sergeant John Michael Schafer. He served two tours in Vietnam with the 25th Infantry Division from January 1, 1968 to December 1, 1972.

Schafer received the Bronze Star Medal for heroism twice, earning the Bronze Star Medal second Oak Leaf Cluster, and the Combat Infantryman's Badge for his actions in ground combat. He was also awarded the Purple Heart and the Army Commendation Medal.

Throughout the 2016-17 season, a different Tennessee golfer will carry the bag displaying his name, rank and branch of service.

Carried By:

Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship: Allison Herring

Golfweek Conference Challenge: Anna Newell

Ruth's Chris Tar Heel Invitational: Blakesly Warren

Maryb S. Kauth Invitational: Teleri Hughes

Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge: Hannah Pietila

Darius Rucker Intercollegiate: Micheala Williams

3M Augusta Invitational: Lucia Polo

VOLScholars

All members of the 2016-17 squad, with the exceptions of early enrollee Engle and freshman Williams, are VOLScholars.

To be eligible to wear the VOLScholar patch, University of Tennessee student-athletes must achieve a 3.0 GPA in either of the two previous semesters, or they must own a cumulative 3.0 GPA (freshmen are not eligible for the patch).

Looking Ahead

Tennessee returns to action in the SEC Championship in Birmingham, Ala., on April 21-23.

2017 NCAA Regionals, hosted by New Mexico, East Carolina, Texas Tech and Ohio State, take place May 8-10. Teams that advance out of regionals will compete at the NCAA Championship in Sugar Grove, Ill., on May 19-24.

For the most up-to-date information about the Tennessee women's golf team, visit UTSports.com/w-golf, follow @Vol_WGolf on Twitter and like the Vols at Facebook.com/VolWomensGolf.