DeKALB —  Junior golfer Caroline Klemp made a huge splash in her Huskie debut. She finished first, winning the individual title on Monday with a score of three under par 69. Klemp’s efforts helped NIU finished sixth at the Redbird Invitational in Normal, Illinois. 

Klemp originally attended University of Missouri – Kansas City, but transferred to Northern Illinois University over the summer after Kansas City had announced plans to eliminate their women’s golf team.

Klemp’s talents are appreciated as Head Coach Kim Kester said she is proud of her golfer.

“For Caroline to come in after seeing her program [at Kansas City] cut and win the tournament was exciting for us,” Kester said to NIU Athletics.

Klemp managed a score of one under 215 par, edging out senior Sam Sandland of Eastern Kentucky by one stroke.

Other Huskies shone during the event. First-year Jasmine Ly finished seventh with a score of three over par 219. 

“It was great to see our two newcomers have a huge impact in the first event of the year,” Kester said to NIU Athletics.

These two performances help launch NIU into sixth place, just one stroke behind IUPUI for fifth.

Kester said the team can use this as confidence for the year as this was a good first tournament. 

The Huskies will be back on the green when they travel to Michigan State University for the Mary Fossum Invitational.

Tee-off is set for Sept. 22 in East Lansing, Michigan.