RICHMOND, Ind. — IU Kokomo women's golf opened its 2026-27 season with a sixth-place finish at the IU East Fall Invitational, held Friday and Saturday at Highland Lake Golf Course. The Cougars finished the two-round tournament at 64-over par, posting matching scores of 32-over in each round.
Hailey Stegemann led the Cougars, tying for 12th individually at 13-over. Stegemann opened with a 6-over first round before carding a 7-over final round.
Freshman Kinleigh Root also earned a top-25 finish in her collegiate debut, tying for 21st at 16-over. Root highlighted her opening tournament with a 5-over 77 in Friday's first round before closing with an 83 on Saturday.
Noelle Hutchings matched Root for the Cougars' best round of the tournament on Saturday, firing a career-best 5-over 77. Hutchings improved by 10 strokes from her opening round and finished tied for 29th at 20-over.
"We started the season strong with two consistent rounds of play while battling difficult weather conditions," head coach Brandi Jones said. "We're excited with Kinleigh's 77 in her first collegiate tournament and the impact she'll have on our program. Noelle also posted a career-best 77 in round two, which has shown how much work she put in over the summer."
Bethel (Ind.) captured the team title at 23-over, while Ellie Webster of Bethel earned individual medalist honors at 1-over.
IU Kokomo Results
T12. Hailey Stegemann - +13 (78-79)
T21. Kinleigh Root - +16 (77-83)
T26. Layla Stearns - +19 (82-81)
T29. Noelle Hutchings - +20 (87-77)
T42. Chloe McFaddin - +26 (83-87)
T63. Madison Chenoweth (Ind.) - +51 (101-94)
71. Alisha Toops (Ind.) - +55 (100-99)
The Cougars will return to action September 26-27 at the TWU Fall Classic in Vonore, Tennessee. The two-day tournament will be played at The Links at Kahite.
For the latest news, updates, and information on the IU Kokomo Cougars, fans can visit IUKCougars.com. Fans can also stay up to date on the latest Cougar news by following @IUKAthletics on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
