Trojan women seize tournament crown; Lane is individual champion

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on April 10, 2013 1:47 PM

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The freshman kept her cool.

And continued her steady play.

Virginia Lane recovered from what could have been a disastrous start and emerged the 2013 Mount Olive College Spring Invitational women's individual champion Tuesday afternoon. Lane shot a two-day score of 151 on the challenging Walnut Creek Country Club course.

The Trojan women claimed the team title with a decisive 636-678 triumph over Conference Carolinas foe Limestone (S.C.) College. Coker (S.C.) College finished third at 686. Barton completed the four-team field with a 709.

On the men's side, Barton shot a second-day team score of 283 and secured the team championship with a 579 -- eight strokes better than the Mount Olive College "A" team. The Trojans' "B" team placed third at 593.

Duke's Adam Sumrall posted a tournament-low 67 in second-round play and earned medalist honors with a 7-under par 137. Barton's Nicolas Fonseca settled into the runner-up spot with a 5-under 139.

Lane and Barton's Brittney Zine entered day two tied atop the leaderboard. The two played in the final group and Lane quickly fell behind by two shots when she bogeyed and Zine recorded a birdie on the par-5 No. 11 hole.

"There was no panic," Lane said. "I knew there was still plenty of time and I told myself to just keep my cool."

Lane did.

The Winton native parred the 12th hole and Zine double-bogeyed, which created a tie. The two remained deadlocked until Lane seized a one-shot lead with a birdie on the par-5 17th hole.

After two more ties, Lane took the lead for good with a birdie on the par-4 No. 5. Lane gained a two-shot advantage when she birdied the par-4 No. 7 and Zine fell victim to another bogey.

"(The) short game is always the key," MOC head coach Chip Spiron said. "The other thing is not knowing how she (Lane) stands. I try to keep that information away from her so she can concentrate on the right things."

Emelie Andersson finished one stroke back at 154 for the Trojans, who recorded their third consecutive top-five finish of the season. MOC entered the two-day tournament ranked No. 32 nationally.

On the men's side, the Mount Olive "A" team shaved five strokes off its first-day team score, but couldn't catch up with the Bulldogs. Jesus Valderrama fired a second-day 2-under 70 and finished at even par (144).

Teammate Dalton Gore ended opening-round play among the leaders, but shot a 75 and ended up one stroke behind Valderrama. Kyle Simpson (147) and Sebastian Andersen (151) completed the team's four-player total.

"Dalton just tried to keep playing well and was doing so until late in the round," Spiron said. "(He) probably started thinking about it or pressing (too hard)."

Philippe Tjantele led the Trojans' "B" team with a 2-over par 146. Brady Hollenbacher (148), Jefred Villalobos (151) and Sam Crowther (153) rounded out the squad's scoring.

"I learned that I have a good team top to bottom and that it's just a matter of picking the right guys (to play together)," Spiron said. "That's my biggest challenge coming up for conference. These are the best teams Mount Olive or me has ever had.

"I'm really proud of them on and off the course. It's been a great year already."

Editor's note: MOC sports information director David Shulimson contributed to this story.