PADUCAH, Ky. (September 15, 2026) – Junior Olivia Whittle had an even day and a top 10 finish to lead the University of North Alabama women's golf team in its season opener Tuesday, as the Lions placed fifth of 14 teams at the Velvet Classic in Paducah, Ky.

UNA finished 47-over to sit comfortably in fifth place with a final score of 309+300+302=911. The Lions were 11 strokes ahead of Belmont and 13 ahead of UAB in sixth and seventh, respectively. UNA also defeated Purdue Fort Wayne, Loyola-Chicago, Southern Illinois, Murray State's B Team, Alabama State, University of the Cumberlands and Tennessee State.

UNA led the field with 31 birdies as a team — tied with tournament winner West Florida and host school Murray State.

Whittle was six-over in the three-round tournament, carding a 72 in the final round. She finished with 10 birdies in the tournament and five in the final round, including three birdies on par three holes Tuesday. The England native's final score was 76+74+72=222 (+6) with the 72 matching her career-best collegiate round.

True freshman Celia Martinez Garcia had a stellar collegiate debut with an 11-over to place second on the team and tied for 17th overall. She rose 20 spots up the final leaderboard with an even-par 72 in the final round. She started on hole six with three pars and a birdie before the turn and stayed even or better the rest of the round.

"Felt really good about the last two rounds, but there's still lots of room for improvement before we head to Nashville," said UNA head coach Neil Self. "Olivia had an awesome tournament, and Celia played an excellent round today."

Fifth year senior Kerigan Klauber finished in the top 20 with a 76-74-78 three round outlook. She finished with eight birdies and recorded par on 30 holes over three rounds.

True freshman Annalee Regan made her collegiate debut and finished tied for 47th at +21, while senior Ava Schwartz rounded things out for UNA in 60th at +27.

Fellow Unisun schools West Florida (ASUN) and Austin Peay (UAC) won the Velvet Classic at +18 with a stroke score of 882. Another UAC member, West Georgia, took third at +27, followed by Murray State with a +33. The UAC and ASUN made up four of the top five spots.

The Lions will have about a month before their next fall tournament — The Robbie hosted by Lipscomb in Nashville, Tenn on Oct. 12-13.

For the latest results, click here.

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