|
Van Zanen is the first NE10 Player of the Week selection in the program’s five-year history (PHOTO BY Mark Bolton) |
Van Zanen earns first NE10 Player of the Week award
Thomas named NE10 Rookie of the Week for first time
NE10 Women’s Golf Weekly Report
EASTON, Mass. (March 16, 2022) – Two members of the Stonehill College women’s golf program have earned weekly honors from the Northeast-10 Conference for their efforts through the first two events of the spring season, the league announced today.
Senior captain Sloane Van Zanen has earned NE10 Player of the Week for the first time in her career, while freshman Mollie Thomas has been named the NE10’s Rookie of the Week for the first time. It marks the first time in program history Stonehill has swept weekly honors from the NE10 as the Skyhawks collect the second and third weekly awards in the program’s five-year history and first since Jennifer Kornacki, ’20 was named NE10 Rookie of the Week as a sophomore in 2018.
Van Zanen, the first NE10 Player of the Week in program history, posted a team-leading 81.75 stroke average over four rounds in two events for Stonehill to open the spring season. She led the Skyhawks to a fifth-place team finish at the Pfeiffer Invitational on February 28 and March 1 in North Carolina, by finishing tied for fifth on the individual leaderboard with a two-day score of 161 (78-88), including a season-low round of 78 in the first round. Van Zanen finished the week ranked second in the tournament with 22 pars, seventh in par three scoring (3.38) and fifth in par four scoring (4.50). She followed that up with a 25th place finish (out of 80 overall) to help lead the Skyhawks at the Southwest Minnesota State Invitational in Arizona last week, posting a combined 166 score (81-85).
 Van Zanen |
 Thomas |
Thomas, the second NE10 Rookie of the Week in program history, joining Kornacki, ’20, registered a 91.00 stroke average over four rounds in Stonehill’s lineup at its first two events of the spring season. She logged a season-low round of 86 in the second round of the Southwest Minnesota State Spring Invitational in Arizona last week to finish tied for 58th overall (95-86=181). Thomas finished tied for 30th at the Pfeiffer Invitational February 28 and March 1 with a two-day score of 183 (92-91).
Van Zanen has competed in all five events for Stonehill so far this season posting a team-best 81.00 stroke average over the ten rounds. She has recorded a pair of top ten finishes, including the top five at the Pfeiffer Invitational to go with a sixth-place finish at The 1886 in October to open the season. Van Zanen has carded career-low matching rounds of 77 at three events this year, including the opening round of the NE10 Championship in Concord, New Hampshire, to sit tied for third after the first day before finishing 12th overall. She has four sub-80 rounds in all over her ten competitive rounds for the Skyhawks.
Van Zanen, the first All-NE10 performer in program history with her second team honors as a freshman in 2018-19, has competed in 19 events over her four-year career at Stonehill. She has posted an 83.49 stroke average over her 39 career rounds for the Skyhawks, which is on pace to set a program best. Van Zanen has registered five career top ten finishes, with the first career top five at Pfeiffer. She registered a personal-collegiate best 36-hole score of 157 (78-79) at the Penmen Columbus Day Invitational in October 2018. Van Zanen has been named to the NE10 Academic Honor Roll five semesters at the College, to date, with Athletic Director’s Honor Roll status five semesters as well. She received the St. Thomas Aquinas, Patron Saint of Students, Medal as a junior for having the highest cumulative grade point average on the team.
Thomas has competed in all five events in her first collegiate season at Stonehill, posting an 89.10 stroke average over her ten rounds of play. She has recorded six rounds in the 80s, carding a season-low 86 three times, including last week in Arizona, to go with a pair in her collegiate debut at The 1886 in October for a season-low 36-hole score of 172 to finish 17th overall for her first career top 20 finish.
Stonehill returns to the course on Monday and Tuesday, April 18-19, when it participates in the Yellow Jacket Invitational, hosted by American International College, at Springfield Country Club in Springfield, Massachusetts. The Skyhawks will host their Spring Invitational on Sunday and Monday, April 24-25, at The Ranch Golf Club in Southwick, Massachusetts.
For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks “Front Row” mobile app, powered by PrestoSports, on iTunes and the Android Market.