2014 MIAC Championship Meet Preview
MIAC women's golf preview courtesy of Matt Higgins and the MIAC office
Click here for the complete MIAC women's golf preview
COON RAPIDS, Minn. -- In terms of drama, it can't get much better - or closer - than last year. In 2013, St. Thomas won the MIAC Women's Golf Championships by a single stroke, coming back from a stroke down after two rounds to defeat Carleton in the closet possible competition. Though it's unlikely that fantastic finish will be repeated, the overall level of play in MIAC women's golf continues to rise, and the 2014 MIAC Women's Golf Championships could be one of the best yet.
Heading into the championship, seven of the MIAC's 11 teams are ranked among the top 50 in the nation according to Golfstat's NCAA Division III statistical rankings. Carleton - which has had an unbelievable fall thus far - checks in at No. 2 in the rankings, with defending MIAC champ St. Thomas also near the top at No. 13. Saint Benedict is ranked 25th, Gustavus is 32nd, St. Catherine is 33rd, Bethel is 43rd and St. Olaf is 49th, proving that the MIAC is one 
of the most talented - and deepest - women's golf leagues in Division III.
MIAC golf fans are preparing to reap the benefits of such a talented field in just a few short days, as the 2014 MIAC Championships will be held Saturday, Sunday and Monday at Bunker Hills Golf Course in Coon Rapids, Minn.
Again in 2014, it appears Carleton and the Tommies will be the top two contenders for the MIAC title. This fall, Carleton leads the conference by nearly nine full shots with a 311.6 stroke average, and the Knights won all four of their tournament appearances. The defending champs aren't far off, as UST ranks second in the league with a team scoring average of 320.2, and the Tommies earned runner-up finishes three times this fall.
Things could get extremely interesting after that, with a host of contenders hoping to join the top three, and also challenge for the conference crown. Gustavus and Saint Benedict were third and fourth a year ago, and heading into the 2014 championships the Blazers rank third in the MIAC with a 324.0 scoring average, with Gustavus right behind in fourth at 329.9. Bethel joined that group in the top five a year ago, and enters the conference tournament with the league's fifth-best scoring average at 331.8.
In just its fourth season of existence, the St. Catherine team could make a big jump. The Wildcats were ninth a year ago, but have climbed the leader board this fall with the sixth-best scoring average (333.1) entering the championships. St. Olaf was seventh a year ago, and also ranks No. 7 in the MIAC this fall with a scoring average of 335.6.
Concordia was sixth last year and has plenty of talent back as the Cobbers hope to ascend into the top five. Macalester, finished eighth last year and also hopes for continued improvement, and Augsburg and Saint Mary's rounded out last season's standings and both hope to shave off some strokes and show some improvement in 2014.
If any more evidence is needed to prove the league's strength this fall, one can look at last year's championship results and All-Conference team and notice all the names back in their team's lineup in 2014. Only two of the top 12 golfers aren't back from a year ago, and there will be 15 players in the 2014 field that earned All-MIAC honors a year ago, starting with Carleton's loaded roster.
Shannon Holden finished first as a rookie in 2014, and the Knights' star added All-MIAC and Rookie-of-the-Year honors. Fellow All-Conference Carleton teammates Kelsey Moede (sixth in 2013), Grace Gilmore (seventh) and Geraldine Tellbuescher (10th) all return. Last fall, Carleton's Taylor Wells missed the MIAC championships while she was studying abroad, but she returned to earn All-Conference honors with her spring performance.
Wells actually carries the league's top scoring average of 78.1 into the 2014 championships. Tellbuescher (78.3), Holden (78.3), Gilmore (79.0) and Moede (79.4) all join Wells on the MIAC leader board this fall, as Carleton's five players all rank in the top seven in the MIAC in scoring average.
The defending-champion Tommies graduated MIAC Player-of-the-Year Doyle O'Brien from their championship roster, but the cupboard certainly isn't bare. Erin Dingmann is tied for the league's second-best scoring average in 2014 (78.3), and she was the runner-up to Holden at last year's conference tournament. Rachel Morris also returns after a fifth-place finish last season, and her average of 79.9 this fall ranks ninth in the league. Another Tommie, Emily Thul, is 11th in the MIAC in 2014 with a scoring average of 80.3.
Gustavus also has a trio of All-MIAC golfers back. Sam Falk was eighth at the championships a year ago and Mae Meierhenry was tied for 10th, and Jordan Drenttel also received All-MIAC honors and leads the team with a scoring average of 81.1 this season. Saint Benedict also has extremely high hopes with Bridget Cummings back, who finished third a year ago, and All-MIAC teammate Grace Todora. Lauren Wise has been the Blazers' top golfer this fall with the MIAC's eight-best scoring average of 79.7, with Cummings (10th, 80.2) and Todora (12th, 80.6) right behind.
Bethel hopes to soar to new heights in 2014 behind Christine Piwnica and her scoring average of 79.1, which ranks sixth in the MIAC this fall, and All-Conference returners Abby Perrenoud and Erika Schwalbe. St. Catherine will look to make a leap this season behind a talented tro of Madie Roe (82.6), All-MIAC returner Abby Conzemius (83.3) and Ellen Rager (83.4), who all rank in the MIAC's top 20 this fall.
St. Olaf has a talented experienced trio leading the way this season with Maxine Carlson (81.6), Nadia Baka (83.6) and Grace Luker (83.9) at the top of its lineup. Macalester has high hopes for Suzanne Dufalt (84.0) at the MIAC meet, and Concordia will be led by Molly Zavadil (84.8). Rachel Kristofferson (86.4) has been Augsburg's top golfer this fall, and Saint Mary's hopes for another strong performance from Kaitlin King (91.5), who has two top-five finishes in 2014.
The three-day, 54-hole MIAC Golf Championships will tee off Saturday at 11:28 a.m. at Bunker Hills. Sunday's second round will also tee off at 11:28 a.m., and Monday's final round will tee off at 9 a.m. Spectators are welcome to attend and there is no admission fee, and spectators are encouraged to read and follow the tournament's spectator rules.
There will be a short awards ceremony following Monday's final round to honor the top teams and individuals. The championship team will receive the MIAC championship plaque, as well as the conference's automatic bid to the 2015 NCAA Division III Golf Championships. The top 10 individual finishers will be named to the All-Championship team, and will be automatically eligible for All-Conference honors in the spring.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
There are numerous ways fans that aren't traveling to Coon Rapids can follow all the action throughout the tournament. The MIAC is enhancing its (unofficial) live scoring, and now will offer hole-by-hole updates through Golfstat's live scoring system. Fans will easily be able to track team and individual progress throughout all three rounds.
The MIAC has a championship home page for the event, that will serve as the online home of the tournament. The championship page will include tee times, pairings and results as they become available, as well as recaps, photos and more.