CLARKESVILLE, Ga.  Methodist's eighth-ranked women's golf team completed Monday's opening round of the two-day Piedmont College Spring Invite with a nine-shot lead over second-place Washington & Lee College.

Monarch teammates Jillian Drinkard and Peyton Durham are tied atop the individual leaderboard with a one-stroke advantage on third-place Beth Ann Townsend of 16th-ranked Washington & Lee.

THE ESSENTIALS
Event: Piedmont College Spring Invite
Location: The Orchard Golf & Country Club (Par 73, 5,807 yards); Clarkesville, Ga.
Team leaders: 1 – Methodist (317, 25-over-par), 2 – Wash. & Lee (326, +34), 3 – Huntingdon College (332, +40)
Individual leaders: T-1 – Jillian Drinkard, Methodist (76, +3), T-1 – Peyton Durham, Methodist (76, +3), 3 – Beth Ann Townsend, Wash. & Lee (77, +4)
T-25 Ranked teams (Golfstat.com) participating: No. 8 Methodist, No. 16 Wash & Lee, No. 24 Huntingdon

NUMB3RS

• In addition to Drinkard and Durham at the top of the leaderboard, the duo are joined in the top 10 by teammate Morgan Bowen who is tied for seventh after shooting an 8-over 81.
• All four players tied for 15th place are from Methodist -- Sarah Sontowski, Micah Mason, Paige Church and Alexandra Williams -- each carding 11-over 84s.
• Tied for 23rd (88, +15) are Mariah Kuranga and Kiersten Van Norden, while Caroline Bryant is one stroke back in a two-way tie for 26th.
• The Methodist "B" team is in sixth, of eight, on the team leaderboard with a Day 1 score of 344.

The Invite's concluding round rolls off the tee boxes Tuesday morning.