(Editor's note: MSUB Athletics release)
PORTLAND, Ore. – Being recognized for standout performances during the 2020-21 season, Montana State University Billings women’s golf juniors Tierney Messmer and Avery Gill were named second-team all-Great Northwest Athletic Conference announced by the league office.
“This is well-deserved recognition for both Tierney and Avery,” said MSUB head coach Jeff Allen. “It is a testament to their consistency throughout the season and proves to them that their hard work is rewarded. They both have a bright future ahead and I hope this serves as motivation for them to continue working hard on their game for an even more successful season next year.”
Messmer led the team and ranked eighth in the conference in scoring average, with a mark of 82.0 strokes per round during her third season in the Yellowjacket program. Messmer’s top finish came at the South Dakota Mines Hardrocker Invitational, when she took third place among a field of 45 competitors. She had the team’s lowest individual round of the season with a 76 on April 2 in the opening round of the RJGA Palm Valley Classic. Messmer went on to shoot a career-low two-round score of 154 at the event.
Messmer competed in all 12 rounds and all six events during the spring season, and also helped MSUB claim the Leslie Spalding Cup in match play against Rocky Mountain College. The Sidney native ranks eighth in MSUB history with a career scoring average of 82.47 strokes per round.
Ranking second on the team with a scoring average of 82.75 strokes per round, Gill was another Yellowjacket who competed in all 12 rounds and all six events during the spring season. Gill’s top moment came on April 13 at the Hardrocker Invitational, where she tied for first place with a two-round total of 163 (80-83). That effort led to her being selected as the GNAC Women’s Golf Player of the Week.
Gill also had a notable performance in Arizona, where she had career best marks of 78 in a single round and 158 in a two-round total. In the first 20 rounds of her MSUB career, Gill holds an overall scoring average of 82.95 strokes per round.
This is the first-career all-GNAC selection for both Messmer and Gill.
Western Washington University swept the 2021 GNAC special awards, with Elise Sumner being named GNAC Player of the Year, Dani Bailey picked as the GNAC Freshman of the Year, Kolby Heggenes selected as the GNAC Newcomer of the Year, and Luke Bennett being tabbed the GNAC Coach of the Year after the Vikings claimed the team title at the GNAC Championships.
