University of Tennessee at Chattanooga freshman Emma de Groot is tied for 17th after the first round of the NCAA women’s golf East Regional.

The Southern Conference freshman of the year shot a 1-over-par 73 at the University of Georgia Golf Course in Athens.

“She didn’t hit the ball great, but she got it in the hole,” UTC coach Colette Murray said. “I thought her demeanor on the course was a lot like it was in the fall. She was trying too hard in the spring.”

Eight teams and the top two individuals not on those teams will advance to the NCAA tournament in Albuquerque, N.M. UTC’s ace is tied for fifth among the “others” after 18 holes.

“She learned a lot from the conference in that you’re not going to win the tournament on the first day,” Murray said. “She went out and put herself in good position.”

After a bogey on her first hole, No. 10, de Groot scored one of her three birdies and settled her nerves. She is scheduled to tee off today from No. 1 at 12:40 p.m.

“I don’t think she was all that nervous,” Murray said. “It was an unlucky bogey, and she got it right back. She knows what she needs to do.”

— David Uchiyama

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