Hope College has regained the Michigan
Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) women's golf
championship.
The Flying Dutch have won the MIAA title for the fifth time
since women's golf became an intercollegiate sport in 1991
capturing six of the eight conference tournaments. The Flying
Dutch finished 90 strokes ahead of league runner-up Albion.
Hope also won the MIAA championship in 1991, 1992, 1993 and
1996. This is the first championship under coach Donna Eaton who
took over the helm of the Dutch this fall. It is actually
Eaton's second MIAA championship. She coached the Hope
volleyball team to the conference crown in 1987.
The championship drive was led by junior Ellen Colenbrander
(Holland HS) who established an MIAA record in winning medalist
honors for the second time in her collegiate career. This season
she averaged 80.8 strokes per 18-hole tournament round. The
previous record was 82.8 strokes by Lisa Stover of Hope in 1993.
Colenbrander was also the league medalist as a freshman
(1996) and was league runner-up as a sophomore (1997). Last
spring she achieved NCAA All-America honors by finishing seventh
in the Division III national championships.
Hope had five players achieve All-MIAA recognition which is
determined by seasonal averages. Joining Colenbrander on the
first All-MIAA team is senior Gina Pellerito of Ada (Forest Hills
Central HS). She finished fifth in the seasonal standings with
an average of 88.5. It is the third time that Pellerito has
achieved All-MIAA status. She was a first team honoree in 1995
and 1996. She was studying in an off-campus program a year ago
and did not play golf.
Gaining All-MIAA second team honors were freshman Emily
Thielk of Ann Arbor (Pioneer HS), senior Melody Oonk of Holland
(Holland HS) and senior Elizabeth Yared of Grand Rapids (East
Grand Rapids HS). Thielk and Oonk finished seventh (92.0) and
eighth (93.0) respectively in the seasonal standings while Yared
was 12th (95.9). Oonk and Yared were also All-MIAA second team
honorees in 1997.
Other members of the team were junior Jessica Carpenter of
Grand Rapids (Comstock Park HS), sophomore Melissa Lucar of
Grandville (Calvin Christian HS), and freshman Kathryn Miller of
Novi (Novi HS).

Hope College has regained the Michigan
Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) women's golf
championship.
The Flying Dutch have won the MIAA title for the fifth time
since women's golf became an intercollegiate sport in 1991
capturing six of the eight conference tournaments. The Flying
Dutch finished 90 strokes ahead of league runner-up Albion.
Hope also won the MIAA championship in 1991, 1992, 1993 and
1996. This is the first championship under coach Donna Eaton who
took over the helm of the Dutch this fall. It is actually
Eaton's second MIAA championship. She coached the Hope
volleyball team to the conference crown in 1987.
The championship drive was led by junior Ellen Colenbrander
(Holland HS) who established an MIAA record in winning medalist
honors for the second time in her collegiate career. This season
she averaged 80.8 strokes per 18-hole tournament round. The
previous record was 82.8 strokes by Lisa Stover of Hope in 1993.
Colenbrander was also the league medalist as a freshman
(1996) and was league runner-up as a sophomore (1997). Last
spring she achieved NCAA All-America honors by finishing seventh
in the Division III national championships.
Hope had five players achieve All-MIAA recognition which is
determined by seasonal averages. Joining Colenbrander on the
first All-MIAA team is senior Gina Pellerito of Ada (Forest Hills
Central HS). She finished fifth in the seasonal standings with
an average of 88.5. It is the third time that Pellerito has
achieved All-MIAA status. She was a first team honoree in 1995
and 1996. She was studying in an off-campus program a year ago
and did not play golf.
Gaining All-MIAA second team honors were freshman Emily
Thielk of Ann Arbor (Pioneer HS), senior Melody Oonk of Holland
(Holland HS) and senior Elizabeth Yared of Grand Rapids (East
Grand Rapids HS). Thielk and Oonk finished seventh (92.0) and
eighth (93.0) respectively in the seasonal standings while Yared
was 12th (95.9). Oonk and Yared were also All-MIAA second team
honorees in 1997.
Other members of the team were junior Jessica Carpenter of
Grand Rapids (Comstock Park HS), sophomore Melissa Lucar of
Grandville (Calvin Christian HS), and freshman Kathryn Miller of
Novi (Novi HS).