BURNSVILLE, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Crookston women's golf team was picked to finish 12^th in the 2022-23 NSIC Women's Golf Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Golden Eagles garnered 36 points and were five points ahead of Minnesota State University Moorhead.

Minnesota Crookston made a move in a positive direction during the 2021-22 season. The Golden Eagles shot a 350 at the EverSpring Inn & Suites Mustang Invite for their lowest round as a team since 2016. Minnesota Crookston finished 12th at the NSIC Women's Golf Championship in 2022. They will look to build off the positive gains heading into 2022-23. The Golden Eagles return Clara Hanson (So., Grand Forks, N.D.), who shot the team's lowest round (78) since Katie Sheetz in 2016. Minnesota Crookston also returns Abby Stender (R-Sr., Madison, Minn.), Denali Johnson (So., Grand Rapids, Minn.), Ciera Kotaska (Jr., Thief River Falls, Minn.), and Tiffany Kozojed (Jr., Hillsboro, N.D.). Minnesota Crookston adds newcomers Anaka Lysne (Fr., Wahpeton, N.D.) and Lauren Bowyer (Fr., Ivanhoe, Minn.). Lysne was named Ms. Golf North Dakota. 

"We will be a mix between youth and experience this year," said Head Coach Bryant Friskop. "We have some solid freshmen coming in that will help compliment the upperclassmen on this team. We were close to our goal last year, and I expect us to continue to improve off our previous season's results. I'm really excited to see what we can do this fall season."
Hanson was picked as the NSIC Golfer to Watch for the Golden Eagles. She led UMN Crookston with an 86.8 scoring average last season. She shot a low round of 78 at the SMSU Spring Invite.

"Clara is a competitor in every sense of the word," Friskop stated. "Clara's work ethic and the way she approaches the game of golf is what makes me so excited to have her back for us for her sophomore season. Clara has shown the ability to shoot low scores last year as a freshman and I know that she has put in the time this summer to improve off her average from last season. I have high expectations for Clara both on the course as well as from a leadership position on this team, campus, and community. Clara's a 4.0 student-athlete with an incredibly bright future."

Augustana University was picked to finish first in the conference with 144 points and 12 first-place votes. Concordia University-St. Paul was picked second with 112 points. Augustana's Molly Stevens was picked as the NSIC Preseason Golfer of the Year.