Cortland graduate student Danielle Bambola (Miller Place) is currently tied for eighth place out of 131 golfers with a six-over par 78 after the first day of competition at the 2021 NCAA Division III Women's Golf Championships. 
 
The four-day event is being held at the par-72, 5,818-yard Forest Akers West Golf Course on the campus of Michigan State University. 
 
Bambola is one of seven golfers tied at six-over par, four strokes behind the leader Sarah Hsu of Oglethorpe University. Hsu and Bambola are two of the six individual qualifiers in the field and played in the same threesome Tuesday. They will play together again Wednesday as part of the later groups to start with a 2:55 p.m. tee-off time. All starting times have been moved 75 minutes later than originally scheduled due to a freeze warning in the morning. 
 
Alexis Sudjianto of Carnegie Mellon is second with a three-over par 75, followed by two golfers at four over, three at five over, and the group of seven at six over. 
 
Bambola struggled early, opening three-over par after four holes with a bogey, birdie, double bogey and bogey. She steadied herself and parred nine of the next 10 holes, as well as the 16th and 18th holes, and finished with a 78 despite three-putting three times. 
 
"Conditions were tough today – windy and cold," said Cortland head coach Mike Discenza. "Danielle did a great job gritting her teeth through a tough start. That took a lot of discipline and toughness to just stay with it. This is a marathon, not a sprint, and she knows it. Because she hung tough today I think she'll be in a good spot tomorrow."

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Interview with Danielle after Day 1 (by Tom Vartanian - TV on the Net podcast)