Sports
Codian in Clear Focus
By: Colin Hanner
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It’s not usually women’s golf that headlines Ohio Bobcat athletics, overshadowed by other sports in the program. But with the recent addition of freshman Angela Codian, the peripheral view of women’s golf may come into clear focus.
Although the team performance has not exactly been dominant—the team has placed 8th, 10th and 15th in three tournaments this season—her dominance is clear: this past week, she was named MAC women’s golfer of the week based on her performance in her first three tournaments as a collegiate athlete.
“I was shocked at the fact that I got (MAC player of the week),” said Codian. “I didn’t know it existed, but my coach e-mailed me and told me that I would be very happy.”
She opened her season with a tie for 15th at the Redbird Invitational, secured a tie for third the following week at the Cardinal Classic, and finished up September at the Nittany Lion Invitational with another tie for 15th.
Yet, she doesn’t believe that she’s reached her full potential just yet.
“I think that I still have room for growth and that comes with practice. I didn’t play well in the first round of (the Redbird Invitational), but I think that also was from the transition to college tournaments.”
In these three tournaments, she has accumulated a stroke average of 75.88, second lowest in the MAC and below her goal of a 76-stroke average. She is shooting an average of 11 strokes lower than her teammates per tournament and has failed to break 80 just once.
“Our team had off days, just like in any sport, and we hope to improve as the season progresses,” said Codian, who believes she has the ability to become a leader on the team, but says that will come with more experience on the course.
Her goal this year is to win MAC freshman of the year, a feat that she says in attainable, but will require performances comparable to what she has played thus far.
Originally from Massillon, Ohio, Codian impressed those at the collegiate level with her finishes in the Cleveland area, as well as on the Taylormade Adidas Collegiate Series. She won the Greater Cleveland Amateur in 2011 by 11 shots and had another impressive victory early this year with a win at Talormade Adidas Collegiate Tour Championship.
With just two tournaments left on the fall schedule, Codian looks to leave a lasting mark that will hopefully continue her success into the spring season.
“With the MAC preview coming up, it will be a good event to see how everyone is playing. I’m definitely excited.”