Cowgirls Return to Florida for Spartan Sun Coast Invitational

STILLWATER – The 24^th-ranked Oklahoma State women's golf team, led by sixth-year head coach Greg Robertson, returns to the Sunshine State for the Spartan Sun Coast Invitational, Feb. 16-17 in Sarasota, Fla.

The Cowgirls will tee off at 66-year-old Palm Aire Country Club at the Champions Course. The course is a par 72, 6,191-yard layout featuring hybrid grass. The forecast projects light rain Sunday and sunny skies for the final round on Monday with temperatures in the mid-to-high 70s for both days.

The 15-team field will take on 54 holes of stroke play competition. The Cowgirls will be paired with the host, Michigan State, and Purdue for the first day of competition. There will be a shotgun start each day at 7:15 a.m. CT.

Coverage
The Spartan Sun Coast Invitational (Feb. 16-17) will have live coverage on GolfStat.com. For round-by-round coverage, follow along on okstate.com.

Meet the Field (15 Teams)
Charleston, Florida International, Georgia Southern, Grand Valley State, Illinois, Kent State, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, No. 22 Michigan State, Notre Dame, No. 25 Ohio State, Oklahoma, No. 24 Oklahoma State, Purdue

In the Polls
· No. 24 OSU is the second highest-ranked team in the field, just behind No. 22 Michigan State, that also includes No. 25 Ohio State and multiple other top 50 teams.
· The new rankings system is compiled through Scoreboard by Clippd. The rankings are powered by a points system that accounts for course difficulty, field depth and numerous other factors.
· The Pokes were runners-up at last fall's Dale McNamara Invitational and the FAU Paradise Invitational earlier this month.
· At the Jackson T. Stephens Cup, OSU claimed a tie for fourth in a field with only teams ranked in the top 30. The Cowgirls followed with a fifth-place finish at the Charles Schwab Women's Collegiate Challenge to close out the fall.

The Lineup
· This week's lineup features one of the most experienced combination of Pokes. The group features no freshman for the first time this season and contains about 10 years of combined collegiate experience.
· Grace Kilcrease, ranked No. 16, is looking to improve on a dominant fall campaign. The junior Tulsa transfer claimed a title at the Carmel Cup, broke the school-record by firing a 63 during the second round of the Schooner Fall Classic and placed top 10 in every tournament. She is the first Cowgirl with six straight top-10's Isabella Fierro in 2020 and will be looking to make it seven straight in Sarasota. The streak is already the longest to start a career at Oklahoma State in recorded history.
· Returning veterans Ellie Bushnell and Thitaporn Saithip posted the team's second and third lowest stroke averages during the fall season.
· Saithip began her spring campaign with a tie for fourth at the FAU Paradise Invitational, firing three rounds at par or better. She has three top 5 finishes through six tournaments this season.
· Sophomore Marta Silchenko returns to the lineup for the first time this season following an injury. She placed third as an individual at the Texas State Invitational earlier this month.
· Sammie Miller finds her way back in the lineup following a sixth-place finish at the Texas State Invitational.
· The Cowgirls will take freshman Summer Lee, the Texas State Invitational Champion, to compete as an individual.

Cowgirls Return to Florida for Spartan Sun Coast Invitational

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Players Mentioned

Ellie Bushnell

Grace Kilcrease

Summer Lee

Sammie Miller

Thitaporn Saithip

Marta Silchenko

Oklahoma State University Athletics