BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (October 31, 2026) – The University of North Alabama women's golf team will play its fifth and final fall tournament of the season Sunday and Monday, as the Lions will join seven other schools at the Samford Intercollegiate at Inverness Country Club in Birmingham, Ala.
This will be UNA's fifth tournament of the fall in five different states — Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Mississippi and now Alabama. This will be the first of three straight tournaments in-state for the Lions with two to open the spring in March.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Samford Intercollegiate
Inverness Country Club
Birmingham, Alabama
Host School: Samford
36 holes on Sunday, Nov. 1 at 7:30 a.m.
18 holes on Monday, Nov. 2 at 7:30 a.m.
Live Scoring
NOTABLES
THE LINEUP: For the first time this season, UNA will use the same top five in back-to-back weeks. True freshman Celia Martinez Garcia will once again take the top spot on the card. Junior Olivia Whittle, redshirt senior Kerigan Klauber and true senior Ava Schwartz will provide a veteran presence in the middle of the order, while true freshman Ella Busby will round things out. Another true freshman, Annalee Regan, will play as an individual.
THE FIELD: This tournament will have ample regional flavor with four in-state schools and two from bordering states. The in-state rivals UNA will compete with include local teams UAB and Samford and traditional rival Jacksonville State. The Lions competed with UAB last week and beat the Blazers by 24 strokes. Two Unisun Sports schools will represent the Atlantic Sun Conference in Bellarmine and West Florida. The other two are Chattanooga and Illinois State.
ORDER OF EVENTS: UNA will practice Saturday at 11:30 a.m. in a shotgun start practice round. A day earlier than usual, the tournament will begin Sunday morning at 7:30 a.m. UNA will pair with golfers from West Florida and UAB on holes 6-10. Regan will play with student-athletes from Bellarmine and Illinois State on hole 11. Round two will take place Sunday afternoon, followed by round three Monday at 9 a.m.
THE COURSE: Inverness Country Club is an unusual par-71 course that stretches 6,264 yards with the larger half coming on the front nine. The final four holes are all par-fours. There are only three par-fives with holes 2 and 8 stretching over 500 yards and hole 14 only stretching 453. The course originated in 1973 and features MiniVerde Bermuda greens. It's also known for having a traditional loop style without parallel holes.
LAST TIME OUT: UNA finished eighth place of 13 teams at The Judson hosted by Southern Miss last week, surging past Belmont in the final round while defeating Lamar, UAB, Jackson State and Alabama State. Fifth-year senior Kerigan Klauber was steady for UNA with a final card of 76-75-76 to finish 11-over to tie for 22nd.
SWEET HOME ALABAMA: This week will mark the 25th time UNA has played a tournament in its home state since the program began nine seasons ago in 2018. The Lions have played multiple times in Birmingham, including the likes of Greystone Golf & Country Club and Hoover Country Club, but this will be the first time UNA plays at Inverness.
UNA LINEUP
#1 – Celia Martinez Garcia — Fr. — Oviedo, Spain
#2 – Olivia Whittle — Jr. — Penkridge, England
#3 – Kerigan Klauber — R-Sr. — Athens, Tenn.
#4 –. Ava Schwartz — Sr. — Temple, Texas
#5 – Ella Busby — Fr. — Summertown, Tenn.
IND — Annalee Regan — Fr. — Muscle Shoals, Ala.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
