Final Team Results | Final Individual Results
MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. – The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers are the 2018 Sun Belt Conference Women's Golf champions. The Chanticleers claimed the title after firing a three-day total of 872 (+20) to capture CCU's first Sun Belt women's golf championship since joining the league in 2016.
"This is huge for the team. To come in here and do what they did on a difficult golf course. Everyone faced difficult conditions the first two days but I am extremely proud of how we competed and played this week," said Coastal head coach Katie Quinney.
The Chanticleers led from start to finish. After a first round score of 297, CCU went out and carded rounds of 286 and 289 in rounds two and three. The 34-stroke victory was the largest margin of victory since 2010. Four of Coastal's five golfers finished in the top 10. Troy was the runner-up in the tournament with a three-round score of 906 while Georgia Southern was third with 914. Texas State was fourth. Arkansas State, South Alabama and Georgia State each finished tied for fifth in the team standings.
Individual champion, Malene Krolboll Hansen, led Coastal. The senior from Taastrup, Denmark, carded a final round 69 to claim the individual title over teammate, Sena Ersoy, by six strokes. Hansen turned in scores of 73-69-69 for a three-round total of 211. The three-day score for Hansen was the third lowest score all-time in a Sun Belt women's golf championship.
"Malene finally earned her win. She had two runner-ups to a teammate her freshman and sophomore seasons. It was awesome for her to get this her senior year. Sena [her teammate] made such a run at it down the stretch but Malene put her foot on the pedal," added Quinney.
Hansen was four-under on the back nine in the final round, with birdies on three consecutive holes, from 13 through 15. She had five total birdies on the day and tied for the overall total of 10 for the three rounds. Her one blemish on the day was a double-bogey on the par-three fourth.
Ersoy was one of three players, including Hansen, to card a 69 in the final round, along with Georgia Southern's Ansley Bowman. Ersoy finished with rounds of 70 and 69 to close out the tournament after opening with a six-over 77 in round one.
Hansen and Ersoy were both named to the 2018 All-Tournament team, which went to the top six finishers (including ties) at the championship. Appalachian State's Joliana Elias, CCU's Marie Lunackova, Georgia Southern's Bowman, and Georgia State's Chloe Howard and Paula Zabarte were the other honorees on the All-Tournament team.
The Chanticleers will represent the Sun Belt in the NCAA Division I Women's Golf Regional Championship scheduled for May 7-9.
2018 All-Tournament Team
Joliana Elias, Appalachian State
Sena Ersoy, Coastal Carolina
Marie Lunackova, Coastal Carolina
Malene Krolboll Hansen, Coastal Carolina
Ansley Bowman, Georgia Southern
Chloe Howard, Georgia State
Paula Zabarte, Georgia State