Trio Named WGCA All-America Scholars
7/2/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
July 2, 2014
CORAL SPRINGS, FLA. - Seton Hall women's golfers Hannah Basalone (Brea, Calif.), Ali Kruse (Overland Park, Kan.) and Erin McClure (Tucson, Ariz.) were named to the 2013-14 Women's Golf Coaches Association (WGCA) All-American Scholar Team for a second straight year on Wednesday.
A total of 664 women's collegiate golfers were recognized across Divisions I, II and III. The criteria for selection to the All-American Scholar Team are some of the most stringent in all of college athletics. The minimum cumulative GPA to qualify is 3.50.
No player in Seton Hall women's golf history has played in more tournaments or more rounds than Basalone. Although she didn't show the same dominance on the course last year as she did the prior two, her efforts were instrumental in guiding the Pirates to their first BIG EAST team championship and NCAA Regional appearance. Basalone graduates as a four-time BIG EAST Academic All-Star, Seton Hall's first tournament individual champion, and its' first All-BIG EAST Team selection. An Academic Merit Award recipient, she was named Seton Hall's Female Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2014 for having the highest cumulative GPA of all female student-athletes.
For a second straight year, Kruse led the Pirates with the lowest scoring average for the academic year. An All-BIG EAST Team selection, she played in all 10 tournaments and notched six, top-10 finishes and four, top-five individual finishes. Most impressively, Kruse finished second at the highly competitive Cincinnati Spring Invitational with an even-par score. The even-par score is the lowest score against par for a tournament in program history. Her 4-under-par, 68, in the final round of the event broke the program record for lowest round. Academically, Kruse was honored for having the highest cumulative GPA of any female student-athlete in the junior class.
An All-BIG EAST Team selection, McClure had a tremendous fall season, leading the Pirates with a stroke average under 76.00. She became the third golfer in program history to win an individual tournament when she shot 2-over-par to win the Rutgers Invitational. McClure tallied a team-best seven, top-10 finishes and five, top-five finishes in 2013-14. She was named BIG EAST Golfer of the Week in the fall, and most recently, tied for second at the 2014 BIG EAST Championship.
Kruse, McClure and the rest of the returning Pirates will be back in action when the squad kicks off its fall campaign for the fifth straight season at the Bucknell Bison Invitational. Play is scheduled to take place from Sept. 6-7 at the Bucknell Golf Club in Lewisburg, Pa.
