WINTER PARK, Fla. (February 4, 2010) – The fourth-ranked Rollins women’s golf team will tee-up their 2010 season, Feb. 7-6 at the Tusculum/Kiawah Island Intercollegiate, continuing its quest for a sixth NCAA Division II National Championship.

The Tars will be one of 17 schools at the season opening event, 10 of which are ranked or received votes in the latest Golf World/NGCA Golf Coaches’ Poll.

No. 4 Rollins joins No. 3 Florida Southern, No. 6 Barry, No. 7 Newberry, No. 10 Lynn and No. 19 Saint Leo as the ranked schools in the tournament. Montevallo, UNC Pembroke, Lincoln Memorial and host Tusculum each received votes. Armstrong Atlantic, Belmont Abbey, Columbus State, Daytona State, Mount Olive, Savannah College of Art & Design and Wingate round out the field.

The teams will play on the 5876 yard Cougar Point Golf Club on Kiawah Island. Last season, Rollins finished runner-up to Florida Southern by two strokes, turning in rounds of 293-295.

Joanna Coe enters this year’s tournament as the defending champion after a dominating run through the tract in 2009. She led from wire-to-wire, opening with a four-under par 68 and finishing with a final round 70 for a five shot victory over Marianne Andersson of Florida Southern.

Coe is coming off a phenomenal fall season where she won two and finished runner-up in two of the Tars four tournaments. She won the season-opening Princeton Invitational and ran away with the Nova Southeastern Shark Invitational by seven strokes. She carries a 72.50 stroke average into the spring and shot five rounds under par, including a season-best 69 final round at Nova Southeastern.

Daniela Vargas was at the top of her game in the fall as well, posting top-10 finishes in each of the Tars tournaments. She tied for sixth at Princeton, was fifth at Penn State, tied for fourth at Nova Southeastern and wrapped up the season with a third place finish at Rollins’ Ross Resorts-Mid Pines Invitational. The senior holds a 74.20 stroke average and opened the Penn State Invitational with a season-best 71.

Newcomer Elin Marcsdottir has made an impact in her first three tournaments for Rollins, earning a pair of top-10 finishes. She was seventh at the NSU Shark Invitational and tied for fourth at the Ross Resorts Invitational-Mid Pines. Veteran Brianna Seo played consistent for Rollins in the fall as well, finishing in the top-20 three times, including a fourth place finish at the Princeton Invitational.

As a team, Rollins won three tournaments and was runner-up in the other during the fall season, with victories at the Princeton Invitational, Penn State Invitational and Ross Resorts-Mid Pines Invitational.

Fans can follow the Rollins women’s golf team all season long on the Tars home on the Web at RollinsSports.com.