Chen Vs. Totland, Solan Vs. Maertz In Women's Amateur Semifinals

Alice Chen of Neshanic Valley needed 17 holes to win her quarterfinal match and 19 holes to emerge victorious in the Round of 16, but the defending champion will compete in the semifinals on Thursday in the 89thNJSGA Women’s Amateur Championship at Spring Brook Country Club in Morristown.

To retain her crown, Chen will first have to defeat Taylor Totland of Hollywood, who will be a teammate of Chen’s this fall at Furman University.

In the quarterfinals, Chen, 18, defeated 22-year-old Kelsi Kavanagh of Manasquan River , 2 and 1, and that only happened after Chen won the 16th and 17th holes to advance to the semis.

In the Round of 16, Chen, who has also won two NJSGA Junior Championships and was the star of last year’s New Jersey State team that won the USGA State Team Championship, she bested Bridget Wilcox, 22, of Roxiticus in 19 holes with a par. Wilcox is a recent graduate of Bucknell who lives in Bernardsville..

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“Taylor and I will be wearing matching purple shirts (Furman’s colors), so we know one Furman girl will advance to the final,” said Chen, who two weeks ago competed in the U.S. Public Links where she lost in match-play to Cindy Ha of Demarest, her teammate on the New Jersey State team.

“We’re both going to play our best. After tomorrow, someone will win, we’ll still be great friends and move on,” said Chen, the second seed who lives in Princeton. “I remember fighting back a lot last year, too. I was moving the ball around today. I just want to tie up some loose ends and shave a couple strokes off my score.”

Third-seeded Totland, 19, who lives in Tinton Falls, is a rising sophomore at Furman. Two years ago, she won the NJSGA Tournament of Club Champions.

In the quarterfinals, she defeated Christina Parsells, 17, of Baltusrol , 3 and 2, who recently won the NJSGA Junior Girls championship by topping Chen in the final. In the Round of 16, Totland got past Christina Paulsen of Ridgewood, 4 and 3.

“The afternoon was a struggle. My swing didn’t feel right. On the 10thhole, I put a shot into a bunker and then another into the water and got mad at myself. After that, something clicked and I won the next three holes (vs. Parsells).”

Coincidentally, all of the top four seeds advanced into the semifinals, including medalist Kelsey Solan of Burlington. She first bested Sarah Kokotajlo of Mountain View, 6 and 4, and then ousted Racquel Zurick, also of Mountain View, 3 and 2, in the quarterfinals. Zurick is a rising junior at Rutgers.

“I’m playing with a little more consistency and confidence,” said Solan, a rising junior at James Madison. “I’ve improved my ball-striking overall.”

Fourth-seeded Noelle Maert of Hyatt Hills, defeated Fran Gacos of Copper Hill, 6 and 5, in the Round of 16. Gacos on Tuesday won the first Women’s Mid-Amateur Championship. In the quarterfinals, Maertz defeated Emily Mills, 18, of Eagle Ridge, a resident of Farmingdale who will be a freshman golfer at Rutgers. Maertz is a rising junior at Wagner and next week will play in the U.S. Women’s Amateur at Nassau Country Club.

“This is what I’ve been waiting for,” Martz said. “I see my hard work paying off. My confidence is a lot better.”

Solan and Maertz are first off the tee at 7:30, followed by Chen vs. Totland.