PADUCAH, Ky. (September 13, 2026) – The University of North Alabama women's golf team will begin its ninth season as a program this week, as the Lions will open the 2026 fall season with three rounds Monday and Tuesday at The Velvet Classic in Paducah, Ky.
The tournament begins with 36 holes on Monday and will conclude Tuesday with the final 18.
This will be the first of five tournaments this fall for UNA, spread across five states in the Southeast. The Lions will play six more in the spring before postseason play begins at the United Athletic Conference Championship in Celina, Texas.
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
The Velvet Invitational
Country Club of Paducah
Paducah, Kentucky
Host School: Murray State
36 holes on Monday, Sept. 14 at 8 a.m. CT
18 holes on Tuesday, Sept. 15 at 8 a.m. CT
Live Scoring
NOTABLES
NEW YEAR, NEW LEAGUE: On July 1, 2026, the Lions officially joined the United Athletic Conference (UAC) as its primary conference. The concept began in 2023 with the Atlantic Sun Conference (ASUN) and Western Athletic Conference (WAC) merging as a football-only alliance. The conferences — with the WAC fully-rebranded as the UAC — are now part of a consortium called "Unisun Sports" that includes the UAC and ASUN. Both the UAC and ASUN have their own championships and automatic bids but now share resources under the same umbrella. All UNA programs now compete in the UAC with the exception of men's tennis and beach volleyball in the ASUN.
THE LINEUP: UNA will debut two new players in this week's lineup. True freshmen Celia Martinez Garcia and Annalee Regan will play in their first collegiate matches on Monday, with Martinez Garcia in the two spot and Regan rounding out the order. Senior Ava Schwartz will be in the top spot, while junior Olivia Whittle will tee off third. Fifth-year senior Kerigan Klauber is the veteran of the group and will be in the four spot.
THE FIELD: There are 13 teams signed up for The Velvet Classic, including three from the state of Alabama in UNA, UAB and Alabama State. UNA will be joined by some familiar conference opponents in West Georgia and Austin Peay, while new ASUN member West Florida represents the other side of the Unisun. Other schools include Belmont, Southern Illinois, Loyola Chicago, Tennessee State, Purdue Fort Wayne, University of the Cumberlands and host school Murray State.
ORDER OF EVENTS: UNA took part in a shootaround yesterday evening and will take part in a practice round today at 1:15 p.m. The tournament begins Monday at 8:30 a.m. with two continuous rounds. The final round will take place Tuesday at 8:30 a.m. Tee times will be made available prior to the first round.
THE COURSE: The Country Club of Paducah is a private 18-hole championship golf facility located in Kentucky. The course was designed by Robert Trent Jones Sr. and measures up to 7,014 yards. The par-72 course features Zoysia tees and fairways with Bentgrass greens, complemented by 39 bunkers and six lakes. Originally founded in 1902 as a nine-hole course, the club relocated to its current championship grounds in 1984. It has hosted prestigious events such as the Kentucky Amateur championship.
NEW SEASON: UNA has seven players on this year's roster, including four returners and three freshmen. Klauber has been with the program for five years and is coming off a season where she had two of the top five rounds in program history. Schwartz is the other senior leader for UNA, leading all players last spring with a 76.8 stroke average.
BACK IN THE BLUEGRASS: This will be UNA's third time playing in Kentucky and the first since 2024. The other two tournaments were hosted by Eastern Kentucky in Richmond, including the most recent where UNA finished fifth of 16 teams with a final score of 895 (+31) — just 11 strokes of the program's all-time best three-round score set in 2023 in Huntsville.
UNA LINEUP
#1 –. Ava Schwartz — Sr. — Temple, Texas
#2 – Celia Martinez Garcia — Fr. — Oviedo, Spain
#3 – Olivia Whittle — Jr. — Penkridge, England
#4 – Kerigan Klauber — R-Sr. — Athens, Tenn.
#5 – 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.
