RICHMOND, Ky. – The Northern Illinois University women's golf team shot a final round 299 to take second place at the EKU Colonel Classic Tuesday at the University Club at Arlington in Richmond, Kentucky.
 
Senior Lauren Ingle (Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Hills-Stoney Creek HS) birdied three of her first four holes on the par 72 course to get the Huskies off to a strong start Tuesday. All four NIU golfers with counting scores on the day carded a birdie on the ninth hole as the Huskies moved up from third place after Monday's first two rounds to finish behind only tournament host Eastern Kentucky.
 
"[Monday] there were perfect scoring conditions and we just didn't score," said NIU head coach Kim Kester. "We scrambled like crazy and did well saving par. Overall, it's good to be back on the upswing [with this tournament]. This is the time of year you want to start peaking with just one tournament before the MAC Championships."
 
With a 54-hole total of 893, NIU finished one stroke ahead of conference foe Akron and five ahead of Cincinnati in the 14-team field that also included Mid-American Conference teams Ball State (9^th), Ohio (T10th) and Western Michigan (T13th).
 
The Huskies opened the tournament on Monday with a team score of six-over par 294, its lowest round since March 1, led by freshman Jasmine Ly (Windsor, Ontario, Canada/Holy Names HS) who shot even par 72, while Ingle recorded a one-over par 73 and Sofia Gomez Enriquez (Asunción, Paraguay/Montverde Academy) was one stroke back.  Ingle matched her 73 in Monday's afternoon round with Ly also adding a 73 while Gomez Enriquez and sophomore Ahra Ko (Suwanee, Ga./North Gwinnett HS) both shot 77.
 
Ko led the way in the final round Tuesday with an even par 72, while Ingle and Ly both came in at three-over 75 and Gomez Enriquez posted a 77 after closing her round with six straight pars.
 
For the tournament, Ly was NIU's top finisher as she tied for fifth at four-over 220, one stroke ahead of Ingle who recorded her fourth Top 10 finish in five tournaments this spring with a tie for ninth. Ko's final round 72 saw her move up 16 places to tie for 17^th (224, +8) and Gomez Enriquez tied for 28^th (228, +12).
Playing as an individual in her first tournament action of the season, freshman Emily Romancew (Pierrefonds, Quebec, Canada/Ecole Secondaire Des Sources) shot her best round on Tuesday with a 75 to tie for 38^th (230, +14)
 
Kester complimented the consistency of the two upperclassmen throughout the season.
 
"Lauren has been consistent all year, it's great to have that in a senior," Kester said. "You know what you're going to get every time she tees it up.  Sofia has been consistent as well, hitting right around her average every tournament. When your upperclassmen stay consistent, it gives the whole line-up a lot of confidence."   
 
NIU has one regular season tournament remaining as they will play in the ISU Redbird Invitational April 9-10 in Normal, Illinois before closing out the 2021 schedule April 24-25 at the MAC Championships in Stow, Ohio.   
 
-- NIU --