LEXINGTON, Va. -- The Christopher Newport women's golf team got off to an outstanding start at the 2025 VSGA Women's Intercollegiate Championship and the Captains (+22) are currently sitting in second place after opening the tournament with a first-round 310. Four CNU players are in the hunt for the top of the leaderboard with Ayla Browning (+2), Elena Rezac (+5), Julia Pelletier (+5), and Taylor Daivs (+6) are all ranked in the top ten after day one. 

Playing at the Lexington Golf and Country Club, the Captains trail only the host Southern Virginia squad by three strokes on the team leaderboard. CNU entered eight players into the event with five playing as a team and three individuals on the course as well.

Browning led the team effort and sits in third place individually just two strokes back of the lead. She started on 18 and navigated the course incredibly well and was sitting at Even par after 12 holes. She birdied the 410-yard par five 10th hole to erase a bogey on the front nine and dropped in nine pars in the same stretch. A pair of bogeys in a three-hole stretch threatened to dampen an otherwise standout performance, but the rookie rallied to end the day with three more pars and signed for a 74.

Helping contribute low scores to the team tally were Rezac and Pelletier with matching 77's and the duo are tied for sixth. Rezac worked through an up-and-down front nine before closing with a strong back. The veteran had five straight pars and sandwiched a couple of bogeys with a birdie three on the 354-yard par four 15th hole. She then finished up with two more pars and went back into the clubhouse just one-over on the back for her 77. Pelletier continued her strong play of late with a team-high two birdies in the round. She was under par on the 306-yard par four 5th and added a two on the 134-yard par three 8th holes. A tough finish included a double bogey and bogey on the final two holes she played, but even with the late hiccup, Pelletier still signed for a career-best-tying 77 and her third straight sub-80 round. 

Alex Delgado (+10) rounded out the counting scores on day one and added one birdie for the Captains in the first round. She dropped in a three on the 274-yard par four 12th hole and finished the day with a 42-40 scoring line with a 10-over 82. She is currently tied for 16th in the 44-player field. Katie Watson (+12) was the final player in the starting five and had an exceptional front nine with seven pars. 

The three individual players were led by Taylor Davis at six-over par with a 78. She is in eighth place after firing a one-over score on the front nine She birdied the tenth hole, a 410-yard par five, and added four pars to go with the seven she had on the front for a steady opening round. Hannah Willman (+17) and Maggie Umphlet (+19) were the final two players for CNU as they each made their third appearance of the Spring season. 

The Captains will return to the course on Tuesday to close out the 36-hole event.