NEED TO KNOW:
Piedmont Leader: T-2nd: Erin Donovan
As a Team: 21st of 34
Event Information: 34 teams; 176 golfers
The Course: Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert, CA (Par 72, 5883)

PALM DESERT, CA - The Piedmont University women's golf team made its debut in the NCAA National Tournament earlier Tuesday as Lions legend Erin Donovan took advantage of the stage to lead her team with a 2-under 70 which placed her in a tie for 2nd overall. 

Going off the back nine to start the day, Donovan never found herself over par after staying even through the first five holes before tallying a pair of birdies in the final four holes before the turn including a rare 4 on the par-5 18th.  

Only six players birdied 18, the longest hole on the course at 513 yards which saw average scores closer to a bogey on the day.  Though that stood out on the scorecard for Donovan, it was the second hole of the day that went under the radar but keyed her day.  

Donovan managed to avoid one of the most dangerous mistakes many made on day 1 by tallying a 4 on the par-4 11th, a hole that saw the most bogeys in the round at 47. 

After finishing 2-under on the first nine, the senior was even on the front nine to finish her day with a 70 that places her in a tie for 2nd just one shot off the leader, Toral Bhatt of Washington & Lee.  

Bhatt is a freshman at W&L and leads the field at 3-under through round one.  The team leaderboard is topped by a bevy of UAA members with three of the top four coming from the mainstay D3 league with the only non-UAA team in the top four being W&L.  

For Piedmont's team score, Keegan Goins was next up shooting a 79 to go 7-over and find herself in the top half of the more than 170-member field. 

A junior from Macon, Goins got her round highlight on the par-4 10th as she birdied the hole becoming the only player in the field to do so.  

Turning in an 84 was Lila Polakowski who parred the 9th and 11th, something only 22 players in the field managed to accomplish as no player birdied the 11th on the day. 

Zoe Shuttlesworth and Addison Maney both carded 86 to wrap up the scoring for the Lions, just two strokes behind the average score for the day on the Firecliff Course at Desert Willow.  

LIONS ON THE LEADERBOARD:
T-2nd: Erin Donovan, 70 (-2)
T-84th: Keegan Goins, 79 (+7)
T-128th: Lila Polakowski, 84 (+12)
T-140th: Zoe Shuttlesworth, 86 (+14)
T-140th: Addison Maney, 86 (+14)

STANDOUT PERFORMANCES:
- Two-time USA South champ Erin Donovan shared the individual lead much of the day displaying why she's a threat to deliver Piedmont's first individual national championship in women's golf.  
- Keegan Goins was a solid veteran presence alongside Donovan as Goins posted a 7-over 79 that puts her 84th in the individual field.  

LET THE LION ROAR:
- Erin Donovan had this to say when asked about her round - "Coming into my ninth hole (18) I was feeling pretty steady, just focusing on hitting the spots on the green that we picked out in the practice round and paying really close attention to the wind. I hit one to about 12 feet on 18 from 84 yds and made the putt going into the turn. This was pretty good momentum going into the back. I hit one to about 8 feet on 1 from 74 yds and made a good putt there as well. I just played pretty steady the rest of the way in."

HOW TO FOLLOW:
- To stay up to date on all information regarding Piedmont University Athletics, be sure to visit PiedmontLions.com and connect with the Green and Gold on social media. Follow the Lions on Twitter: @PiedmontLions, Instagram: @PiedmontLions, and Facebook. To follow each Piedmont athletic program on social media, use the Social Media Directory at PiedmontLions.com or click here.