SCHEDULE | ABOUT CHATTANOOGA GOLF  
 
CHATTANOOGA---The Chattanooga Mocs women's golf team took positive steps forward in 2023-24 with a young group. How young? All five starters are back for 2024-25 with competition brought in as well. It's certainly a trending situation.
 
The ladies captured one team title and two medalists honors a year ago. Their 294.61 scoring average set a new school record by nearly two strokes led by then first-year performers Violeta Fernandez-Tagle (72.76) and Makenzie Cooper (73.52).
 
That rising sophomore and junior duo are joined by fellow junior Kera Healey and sophomore Giulia Foresta rounding out the top four starting all 11 events. Senior Nieves Martin started eight times last season, while senior Alexis Daniel made one. That makes six with experience in blue & gold compared to this time last year when there were just two.
 
Two is the number of newcomers. Late addition Chloe Stevenazzi (Uruguay) and local product Mattie Nall (Baylor) are competing for lineup spots as well. It's a deep squad that looks to make the next step under Coach Colette Murray who set up a strong schedule to challenge the group.
 
"We've always had a good schedule, but this year's probably the best one we've had since maybe 2009," Murray stated. "There's a number of factors for that. One of them is budget and being able to go out west and go central and actually be able to get variety in competition, not just in the south or the southeast. We appreciate Mark's (AD Wharton) support in helping us get to the quality we have.
 
"Having the home tournament at the Honors Course opened a lot of doors for us."
 
A new rule being in place also provided a boost. The .500 rule is now in effect for the women's game meaning any team earning an at large berth in the NCAA Tournament has to have a .500 or better record for the season in head-to-head results from their tournament slate.
 
"The tournaments that are quality event will still have that quality, but you are going to see a lot more overlap from a top 50 teams with more 50-100 than in the past," Murray explained. "It'll be interesting. We're all a little unaware of how this is all going to pan out. But from my Chattanooga schedule standpoint, it's stacked and we're excited to be able to compete against the best teams in the country.
 
"It's a great thing for women's golf, and I think there's enough parity in the game now. This is the right move for college golf to be making."
 
The ladies open Sept. 9-10 in Albuquerque, N.M., at the Dick McGuire Invitational. That shifts to the annual trip to Nashville for Vanderbilt's Mason Rudolph Championships prior to familiar haunts at the Evie Odom Invite and Mercedes-Benz Collegiate to close out the fall.
 
They start out west again in the spring going to Arizona for Wisconsin's Westbrook Invitational in late February. That precedes two trips to Florida for the Gators Invitational and Florida State Match Up. The Honors Course plays host to this year's Chattanooga Classic before the Mocs end the regular season at Georgia for the Liz Murphey Collegiate.
 
The SoCon Championships start the postseason in April in West Columbia, S.C. The NCAA Tournament is in May with regionals at a site to be determined while the finals return to Carlsbad, Calif., a suburb of San Diego.
 
2024-25 Regular Season Schedule
Sept. 9-10: Dick McGuire Invitational; University of New Mexico Championship Course; Albuquerque, N.M.
Sept. 20-22: Mason Rudolph Championships; Vanderbilt Legends Club (North); Franklin, Tenn.
Oct. 4-6: Evie Odon Invitational; Princess Anne C.C.; Virginia Beach, Va.
Oct. 20-22: Mercedes-Benz Collegiate; Cherokee C.C.; Knoxville, Tenn.
Feb. 23-24: Westbrook Invitational; Westbrook Village G.C.; Peoria, Ariz.
Mar. 7-8: Gators Invitational; Mark Bostick G.C.; Gainesville, Fla.
Mar. 21-23: Florida State Match Up; Seminole Legacy G.C.; Tallahassee, Fla.
Mar. 28-30: Chattanooga Classic; Honors Course; Ooltewah, Tenn.
Apr. 8-9: Liz Murphey Collegiate; UGA Golf Course; Athens, Ga.
 
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