Edisto Island, S.C. – Fighting through windy first-round conditions on Sunday, Western Carolina sophomore transfer Elsa Maren Steinarsdôttir fired an opening-round 2-over par 73 to sit in fourth place, a stroke off the pace after 18 holes at the Edisto Island Invitational at the par-71, 5,980-yard Plantation Course. Steinarsdôttir posted her best 18-hole score as a Catamount to lead the scoring five to a sixth-place tie with 36 holes remaining, matching Radford after one round.
 
Round two is scheduled for a 9 a.m. shotgun start on Monday morning, weather permitting as forecasts call for windy and rainy conditions.
 
Opening on the front nine, Steinarsdôttir countered a pair of double-bogeys with three birdies on the front nine to make the turn to the back at 1-over par. Two bogeys on the par-4 13th and par-3 16th left her at 3-over for the day before carding a fourth birdie on the final hole of the day, the par-5, 495-yard 18th, for the 2-over round.
 
Steinarsdôttir finished Sunday tied for first in par-5 scoring at 2-under par (4.33) and was tied for second in par-4 scoring at 1-over par (4.09). Her four birdies on Sunday were tied for the second-most in the field.
 
Catamount senior Sadler Miller is tied for 28th overall with a 7-over par score of 78, posting a pair of birdies and the lone eagle of the first round on the par-5, 438-yard 10th. The Clayton, N.C., product was even through six holes amidst Sunday's tough weather day, turning for the back nine at 5-over par. She then eagled the 10th to move to 3-over par through 14 holes. Miller carded four consecutive bogeys to close the day.
 
WCU graduate transfer EC Niebauer and sophomore Annalee Caveney are both among a tie for 37th after 18 holes with matching scores of 9-over par 80, with sophomore transfer Emily Rosenschein (97) in a tie for 75th. Niebauer charted a trio of birdies on Sunday, closing her first round with third birdie of the day, while Caveney had a pair of birdies, one on the front and one on the back nine.
 
Elon posted a team score of 10-over par 294 on Sunday to lead the 14-team field, carrying a five-stroke edge over runner-up Georgia State (299) after 18 holes. Tournament host College of Charleston (300) is third, six strokes off the pace, with Campbell (308) and Stetson (310) rounding out the top five. WCU is a stroke outside the top five.
 
No. 124 Molly Hardwick of Charleston and Elon teammates Emma Hansen and Ashley Lafontaine each shot a 1-over par 72 on Sunday to lead the 77-golfer field, a stroke ahead of WCU's Steinarsdôttir at 73.
 
Paired with golfers from directional rival East Carolina and Longwood, the Catamount scoring five hit the course between holes No. 8 and 10 in Monday's second round. Live scoring through the Scoreboard app, powered by Clippd, is available online through a link at CatamountSports.com.
 
T6 – Western Carolina – 311 (+27)
4 – Elsa Maren Steinarsdôttir – 73 (+2)
T28 – Sadler Miller – 78 (+7)
T37 – EC Niebauer – 80 (+9)
T37 – Annalee Caveney – 80 (+9)
75 – Emily Rosenschein – 97 (+26)