The Little Rock women’s golf team is preparing to compete in the Ohio Valley Conference Championship, scheduled for April 19-21 at Dalton Golf and Country Club in Dalton, Georgia.
The event is significant for the Trojans, who won the championship two years ago and finished as runner-up last season. The team was picked to finish second in the preseason poll and has focused throughout the year on another title run.
“This is what we’ve been preparing for all year,” junior Eleonore Aernouts said. “We’ve practiced a lot over the last two weeks, and I think we’re ready. I really believe we can win the tournament, and that’s our goal going in.”
The championship will be played over 54 holes at a course that dates back to 1912 and was redesigned in 2020 by architect Bill Bergin. It is the first time this venue will host the OVC Championship. Preparation has included studying available information about the course layout online.
“I’ve watched a little bit on YouTube, but there’s not a lot out there,” Aernouts said. “I also look at it on Google Maps just to get a sense of the layout before we get there.” She added that learning from practice rounds would be important: “I try to learn as much as I can from that – especially where to place my shots and how to manage the course for the tournament.”
Head coach Jenna Birch said she believes her team is prepared: “We’ve put ourselves in position all year to compete for this,” Birch said. “This group understands what it takes to win at this level, and we’ve focused on sharpening the details – especially consistency and execution. If we play our game, we like where we stand.” Nine teams are set to compete with practice rounds beginning Saturday before competition starts Sunday morning.
