Marshall University Athletics
Women's Golf Inks Four for Fall 2015
11/19/2014 12:00:00 AM | Women's Golf
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - First-year women's golf coach Tiffany Prats has completed her first recruiting class at Marshall with the signings of Lauryn Davidson (Vienna, W.Va.), Ylva Forslund (Vreta Kloster, Sweden), Tori Johnson (Newark, Ohio) and Joey Walz (Pittsburgh), announced on Wednesday.
"The past four months have been very busy in the Marshall women's golf office," Prats said. "I'm excited to announce the signing of four players that will join us next fall. Ylva, Joey, Tori and Lauryn are going to be vital as we rebuild this program. Having girls that buy into our vision was key with this class and I couldn't ask for a better group. It will take a lot of hard work and dedication and I know they are up for the challenge."
Davidson, of Parkersburg High School, is a three-time West Virginia Junior Amateur Champion (2011, 2012, 2014). She was named the 2013 West Virginia Golf Association Sportsman of the Year, as well as the 2012 West Virginia Girls' Golfer of the Year. Other career highlights include fourth-place finishes at the West Virginia Women's Amateur in 2013 and 2014, and at the PKB Carolina's Classic.
"I'm really excited about choosing Marshall," Davidson said. "Getting to be a part of a team with such a big future is going to be a lot of fun."
Prats spoke of her excitement about the local talent.
"It's exciting to add Lauryn to our roster," she said. "I think it's very important to keep West Virginia girls in-state. Lauryn lived in Huntington when she was little so she is very familiar with the area and our courses. She has done a lot in her career but she still has a lot of talent left to tap."
Along with local talent, Prats added international flair to her roster when signing Forslund, who has played five years on the Swedish Junior Golf Tour. Last season, she played at the tour's highest level and is currently ranked 60th of all Swedish girls up to 21 years old (11th in her own age group). In the Swedish National Team Championship Series, she posted a season-low round of 68. She finished second in three tournaments and holds her ninth place finish at the Swedish Junior Match Play Championship as her best achievement of the year.
"I'm really excited to come and play for Marshall University and Coach Prats," Forslund said. "Coach Prats' focus on the short game will certainly help my game a lot since I think that's where I can and need to improve the most. Coming from Sweden I think that Huntington and West Virginia can be a really good match as well."
Prats is eager for Forslund to join the Herd in Huntington.
"Ylva brings an added dimension to our roster being from Sweden," she said. "She has played national team golf so she understands what's it's like to be part of a team. She is very mature for her age and has a great work ethic. I look for her to be a big part of our lineup next season."
Johnson, of Licking Heights High school, helped her team to its first appearance at the Ohio State Championship and a D-II 10th-place finish during her junior season in 2013-14. She was voted her team's Most Valuable Player for all four years of her high school career, and holds her school's record for 18 holes (76). As a senior, she was named All-Ohio Scholar Athlete of the Year. She is also a two-time winner of the Newark Advocate Female Golfer of the Year award (2012, 2013), and a three-time Licking County Junior Golf Association Champion (2011, 2012, 2013).
"I'm excited and truly honored for the opportunity to become a member of the Marshall University women's golf team," Johnson said. "I am looking forward to following the leadership of Coach Prats and teaming up with the rest of the Herd."
Prats is thrilled to start working with Johnson in the fall.
"Tori has a great personality and I'm really excited to coach her," she said. "Her game has so much potential and I can't want to see how far she can go."
Rounding out Prats' first recruiting class is Walz of Seton-La Salle Catholic High School. She is a back-to-back runner-up of the PIAA State Tournament, and won the 2014 PIAA Regional Tournament. She earned silver in 2013 and bronze in 2014 at the WPIAL Class AA girls golf finals, and was the Pigt No. 1-rated player for the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons.
"I am so grateful to be able to be joining such a wonderful team next year with amazing girls playing by my side and an awesome coach helping me every step of the way," Walz said. "I am ready to bring my best game to the Herd women's golf team and for Coach Prats to teach me to be the best player I can be."
Prats is looking forward to Walz' arrival.
"I have known Joey for a few years and I'm very happy that she has decided to join our program," she said. "She is a great player who will work hard to help our program."
On Monday, Prats added two more to her spring 2015 roster with the signings of sophomore transfer Pimrawee Huang (Nakornpatom, Thailand) and incoming freshman Sarfina Seretharan (Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Malaysia). The two will join the Herd for its first spring 2015 outing, the Kiawah Island Classic in Kiawah Island, S.C., on March 5, 2015.
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