KNOXVILLE (Oct. 19, 2014) – The ETSU women’s golf team once again improved on their previous two rounds of the weekend, but were unable to make a move up the leaderboard Sunday during third and final round play at the Mercedes-Benz Intercollegiate at the Cherokee Country Club.

Facing a talented field that included No. 2-ranked South Carolina and eight teams ranked in the nation’s Top 40, the Buccaneers ultimately finished the event in 15^th place. On the bright side, the Bucs posted four scores in the 70s for the second straight day and got a team-best round of 3-over-par 74 from sophomore Linda Dobele (Ogre, Latvia).

“We improved a little today as individuals, but as a team we are still struggling to compete,” said ETSU head coach Stefanie Shelton. “I’m hoping that this week was a wake-up call for our team. Our weaknesses are being exploited and we need to accept them and work hard to improve them. This team has a mountain to climb, and I’m hopeful that we found our hiking boots at this tournament.”

While Dobele posted the team’s best round of the day, junior Vivienne Chin (Kota Kinabalu, Sabah Malaysia) finished the event as the top ETSU performer, carding a 5-over 76 on Sunday and tying for 51^st. Freshman Dominika Czudkova (Cesky Tesin, Czech Republic) and sophomore Rachel Pollock (Guelph, Ontario, Canada) both posted scores of 76 on Sunday and finished tied for 54^th and 68^th, respectively.

As for the tournament itself, No. 2 South Carolina took the team title by 14 strokes over host and No. 13-ranked Tennessee. The Gamecocks finished at 13-over 865 and made it a sweep thanks to No. 3-ranked Nanna Madsen’s two-stroke win over Tennessee’s Hannah Pietila.

The Bucs will return to play in their final tournament of the fall on Sunday, Oct. 26 in the first round of the Palmetto Intercollegiate in Kiawah Island, S.C. For more on ETSU women’s golf throughout the 2014-15 season, visit ETSUBuccs.com and click on the women’s golf link.