Kleve tied for lead at Mustang Invite for CSC

MARSHALL, Minn. – Sophomore Macy Kleve birdied three holes and shot a round of 2-over 74 to hold a share of the individual lead after the first of two rounds at the EverSpring Inn & Suites Mustang Invite at the Marshall Golf Club.

Chadron State is in third place in the team standings with a cumulative round of 27-over 315, just nine strokes off the lead and three strokes behind second place.

Kleve's 74 has the Windsor, Colorado, native in a tie with Augustana's Payton Drefke for first in the individual standings. Sophia Karsnia of Sioux Falls is one stroke behind at 3-over 75, with a trio of golfers tied for fourth at 4-over 76.

Kleve shot 1-over on both the front nine and the back nine. She birdied the par-3 No. 9, the par-5 No. 14 and the par-4 No. 15 and shot 1-under combined on the course's five par-5 holes.

Sophomore Lauren Knapp also cracked the top 10 of a 73-golfer field after Saturday's initial 18 holes. Knapp shot a round of 6-over 78, including a front nine with seven pars. Knapp's 13 pars were tied for the most in the field on Saturday.

Maggie Teague shot a 7-over 79 and is tied for 14th. Klara Kleinig had the fourth-best round for CSC at 12-over 84 and was the final score factoring into the Eagles' team total. Kleinig, tied for 40th place, had a solid round derailed by going 6-over on holes 15-18.

Brooklyn Tychsen is tied for 58th after carding a 92. Taegan Bach, competing as an individual, shot a 97.

Augustana leads the team standings at 18-over 306, with a six-stroke lead over Sioux Falls at 24-over 312 and a nine-stroke lead over the Eagles. Behind Chadron State, it is eight strokes back to fourth-place Upper Iowa and 12 strokes between the Eagles and fifth-place Winona State, with hosts Southwest Minnesota State two strokes behind Winona in sixth.

Chadron State is the only RMAC school competing at this event.

The EverSpring Inn & Suites Mustang Invite continues and concludes on Sunday. Half the field will tee off from hole 1, while the other half will start on hole 10. Chadron State's tee times begin at 8:00 a.m. from hole No. 1, with Kleve's tee time set for 8:16 a.m.