Senior Grace Honigford named OAC Women’s Golfer of the Week for fourth time this season

By Wes Mayberry

ADA — Ohio Northern senior Grace Honigford (West Chester/Lakota East) was named the Ohio Athletic Conference Women's Golfer of the Week for the week of Sept. 26 to Oct. 2.

This marks Honigford's fourth such accolade this season and the 14th of her career.

The latest recognition comes after a record-setting showing at the Bluffton Beaver Fall Classic on Saturday and Sunday.

Honigford recorded the first hole-in-one in program history on the 145-yard 14th hole at Bluffton Golf Course and won Medalist honors by three strokes as ONU won the team title by 48 strokes with a 308-302—610.

She shot a 73-70—143 and has now won Medalist honors in all four tournaments the Polar Bears have competed in this fall, giving her 19 in her career, both of which are school records.

Her second-round 70 marked an 18-hole school record, besting her previous record of 71, and she tied her own school record score for 36 holes.

As a team, the Polar Bears tied the school record for 18 holes with Sunday's 302 and broke the program record for 36 holes, which had been 611. The prior records had been set earlier this season at the Heidelberg Fall Invitational on Sept. 16-17.

Northern's victory in Bluffton was its fourth consecutive tournament win, improving its record to 19-0 to start the 2023-24 season. Both of those marks are also school records.

A College Sports Communicators Second Team Academic All-American last season, Honigford is averaging 72.7 strokes through seven rounds of play spanning four events this fall.

The Polar Bears return to action Oct. 15-17 at the Golfweek NCAA Division III Fall Invitational in Miramar Beach, Fla. to close out their fall schedule.