BEAUMONT, Texas – The Lamar University women's golf team looks to build off its impressive start at last week's season-opening tournament when it looks to defend last year's title at the Mark Allen ORU Shootout set for Monday and Tuesday in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
 
The Cardinals, led by Eva Martinez Calavia, who earned medalist honors in her LU debut, finished second at the USA Intercollegiate in Mobile, Alabama, to open the season. LU coach Jessica Steward was encouraged by what she saw from her team.
 
"I thought our opening tournament was great. It was a tremendous confidence builder," Steward said. "We reshaped our expectations after the tournament. We have set our standards higher.
 
"What impressed me the most is that we made no excuses, we just went out and played. We could have complained about how our practices were disrupted because of the hurricane, but the girls didn't. They went out on the course and performed tremendously."
 
The Cardinals had three players finish in the top 10. In addition to Martinez Calavia, who was five strokes ahead of her nearest competitor, finishing with a 9-under-par 207 for 54 holes, LU's Elodie Chapelet tied for fifth at 2-under, while Olivia Le Roux finished in a tie for ninth at 1-over. Chapelet, last season's Southland Conference women's golfer of the year and freshman of the year, has placed in the top five in all 10 tournaments in her LU career.
 
Martinez Calavia, a sophomore who transferred to LU after Armstrong State dropped its athletic program, was a second-team all-conference selection in the Division II Peach Belt Conference last season.
 
"I knew Eva had the talent to compete at this level," Steward said. "I think she surprised herself a bit. We've come to expect good finishes from Elodie. She will be the first to tell you that she would have liked to play better. She missed some birdie putts, but I think that is because we haven't been able to work on our putting as much as we'd like."
 
Le Rou, a second-team All-Southland Conference performer as a junior last season, was steady through all three rounds last week,
 
"I think you're going to see a new Olivia this year," Steward said. "She has worked hard and has gained more confidence."
 
Martinez Calavia, Chapelet and Le Roux will be the top three starters for the Cardinals in Tulsa, with senior Felicia Sauceda, who finished in a tie for 37^th last week, teeing off from the No. 4 spot. Freshman Brooke Duzan will be the No. 5 golfer for the Cardinals as she makes her LU debut. Duzan replaces Ashlyn Hendricks in the LU lineup.
 
"Brooke has been working hard and has shown improvement," Steward said. "It's every coach's dream to have strong competition for the fifth spot, and we have that right now."
 
Seventeen teams will compete in this year's tournament at the Meadowbrook Country Club on a 6,013-yard, par-71 layout. In addition to LU, the Southland Conference is represented by Houston Baptist, Incarnate Word, McNeese, Stephen F. Austin and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The remainder of the field has Arkansas State, Louisiana-Monroe, McLennan Community College, Missouri State, Northern Iowa, Oklahoma Christian, UT Arlington, UTEP, Utah Valley, Wichita State and the host school, Oral Roberts.
 
The teams will play 36 holes starting at 8 a.m. Monday, with Tuesday's final round of 18 holes also slated to start at 8 a.m.
 
Last season, LU won the event by 13 strokes with LU's Wenny Chang defeating Chapelet on the first playoff hole to be declared the individual champion.
 
"If we play the way we're capable of, we can compete for the championship again this year," Steward said. "We just have to focus on what we need to do and things will take care of themselves."