2019-20 Omaha Women's Golf - Year In Review

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The Omaha women’s golf team went into the 2019-20 season knowing it was going to rely heavily on its underclassmen. The Mavericks had just two seniors and when the season ended, only one had played regularly. Still, UNO’s younger players were up to the task of being a part of the leadership group that would guide the team through six tournaments before the season came to its premature end.

Up On Top
Sophomore Zora Gittens led the Mavericks in scoring in 2019-20, just as she did the season prior. The Florida native led the Mavericks in scoring in half of the tournaments. Her best performance of the season came in the spring opener when she shot 230 for the 54-hole Kiawah Island Classic in South Carolina on March 1-3. She finished the tournament with an even-par round of 72 which would be the lowest posted by a Maverick during the season.

Excited to get to work in Kiawah for the Edwin/Watts Invitational! #EveryoneForOmaha ????#OmahaWGO ??#Grind ?? pic.twitter.com/A2yVomS3Fh
— Omaha Women's Golf (@OmahaWGO) March 1, 2020

Freshman Contribution
It’s not always easy for a freshman to make an immediate contribution in Division I golf, but Mandi Granato made her mark. The native of Plainfield, Ill. finished second to Gittens in team scoring and led the Mavericks in scoring when they closed out the fall at the Creighton Classic on Oct. 7-8.

Granato was second in team scoring in four other tournaments and third in the other, giving the Mavericks reason to believe they’ve got a budding leader in the seasons to come.

Steady Senior
Samantha Chong traveled a long way to play college golf. The native of Malaysia played in all 17 rounds during her senior season and scored for the Mavericks in all but one tournament. She got off to a good start in the fall, leading the Mavericks in scoring in two of the four tournaments. She was second on the team in the other two.

Chong’s season highlight came at the Rose City Collegiate on Sept. 30-Oct. 1 in Oregon. She shot a team season-best and career-best score of 228 to tie for 19th in the 70-player field.

Sam Chong rolling in a slick birdie putt on #4 as well. #EveryoneForOmaha pic.twitter.com/LffcZaaiu9
— Omaha Women's Golf (@OmahaWGO) September 17, 2019

Final Numbers
Gittens was Omaha’s top scorer in 2019-20 with a stroke average of 80.4. Granato was second at 81.1 while junior Hannah Hunke, who scored in all six tournaments for the Mavericks, was third at 82.2, a career best.

Chong was fourth on the team at 82.4 and would finish her UNO career 11th all-time with a stroke average of 81.59 in 92 rounds.

With their top three scorers returning for the 2020-21 season, the Mavericks have reason to believe they can move up in the Summit League standings.