COLUMBIA, MO. – The University of Missouri Women's Golf team will open its 2019-20 season this week with a two-day, 54-hole stroke play tournament hosted by the University of Minnesota. The Minnesota Invitational will feature 15 teams and will consist of 36 holes on Monday (Sept. 9), with the final 18 to be played the following day at the Prestwick Golf Club in Woodbury, Minn. Live scoring for the tournament will be available at www.golfstat.com.
Head Coach Stephanie Priesmeyer will have a lot of new faces in her starting lineup, as four first-time starters will mix with senior number-one standout Jessica Yuen (Bolingbrook, Ill.) in the season opener. Included in that group are a pair of freshmen in Bri Bolden (Mokena, Ill.) and Sophia Yoemans (Red Wing, Minn.), who will occupy the number two and three spots in the lineup, respectively. Junior transfer Noelle Beijer (Assendelft, The Netherlands) will play in the fourth spot, with sophomore and Columbia, Mo. native Julia Bower making her first appearance in the starting five.
Yuen, who led the Tigers with a 73.64 stroke average as a junior, is the Tiger headliner, and she'll look to close her MU career out with a flourish. Yuen, who has 11 top-10 tournament finishes in her Tiger career, was an individual qualifier for the 2018 NCAA Championships, and last year earned an invite to the prestigious inaugural Augusta National Women's Amateur.
Yuen will have a special honor in the Minnesota Invitational, as she will carry the Folds of Honor bag that celebrates the life of 1st Lieutenant William Anthony Edens, a Mizzou grad who was killed during service in Iraq on April 28, 2005. Throughout the course of this season, a designated member of the Tiger lineup will carry a special golf bag embroidered with Lt. Edens' name. The team asks that fans consider pledging a dollar amount for every birdie made this season by the Tiger carrying Lt. Edens' bag (one-time flat donations are also certainly welcomed).
For more information on 1st Lt. Edens and how to donate to the season-long fundraiser, please visit www.MUTigers.com/FoldsOfHonor.
Bolden and Yoemans (pronounced YAY-muns) both have impressive amateur resumes to bank on. Bolden was a two-time runner-up at the Illinois State Championships who was the 2016 Illinois Junior Girls Amateur champion while winning 16 different prep tournaments for Lincoln-Way High School. Yoemans, who will be playing just 40 miles from her hometown, dominated Minnesota prep golf the last three years, winning individual state championships in 2017, 2018 and 2019. She also starred on the amateur tours, posting multiple top-10 finishes at various AJGA, HJGT and FCWT events, including three wins, while she also has twice qualified for the USGA Girls Junior Amateur Championship, advancing to nationals in both 2017 and 2018.
Beijer (pronounced BAY-yur) comes to Mizzou from Florida Tech, where she helped lead the Panthers to the NCAA Division II team national championship last season while she won WGCA second-team All-American honors. Beijer transferred to Mizzou, where she will have two season of eligibility remaining, after Florida Tech dropped their women's golf program following last season.
Bower makes her first appearance in the lineup for her hometown school, after playing unattached in three tournaments last year as a redshirt freshman. Bower starred for Rock Bridge High School in her prep days, as she tied for the 2016 Missouri Class 2 individual championship as a senior.
"We have four new players, they are really fun, and I feel like they've brought a new energy to the whole team that's benefited the veterans too," said Priesmeyer. "First time out of course, and I'm not sure what to expect yet, but I'm very excited to see what we can do, this team is very determined and very talented," she said.
For all the latest on Mizzou Women's Golf, stay tuned to www.MUTigers.com and follow the team on Twitter (@MUWomensGolf) and on Facebook at MizzouWomensGolf.