Sept. 21, 2007

Sunset Beach, N.C. - Richelle Wedzik and Johanna Ebenhag each shot an opening-round 76 to lead the USC Upstate women's golf team in its first tournament as a member of NCAA Division I, and the Spartans stand in sixth place out of 15 teams in the three-round, three-day Sea Trail Intercollegiate at the Sea Trail Golf Resort Friday afternoon.

Elon, which is playing host to the event, is in first place after posting a 295 team total on the 5,947-yard, par-72 Sea Trail Byrd course. Bethune-Cookman is second with a 296 score and is followed by Xavier (300), Murray State (311), James Madison (312), Upstate (315), Gardner-Webb (317), Radford (318), High Point (328), Appalachian State (329), Mercer (331), Hampton (354) and South Carolina State (355).

Elon's Samantha Widmer, Xavier's Rachel Leui and Bethune-Cookman's Emma Tayler each opened with an even-par 72 to take a share of the elad into Saturday's second round. Wedzik and Ebenhag are just four strokes back in a tie for 11th. Ebenhag, a freshman from Gothenberg, Sweden, is playing in her first collegiate tournament and Wedzik was the Spartans' stroke leader last season.

Richia Wedzik posted a 79 and is tied for 25th. Audrey Church opened with an 84, while Traci Bodner added a 90 for the Spartans.

Upstate, in its third year competing in women's golf, is in its first season as a member of Division I after playing the last two seasons on the Division II level. The University moved the athletics program to Division I starting this fall.