Golfer from Berlin Keeps Lead at NEWGA Championship

SIMSBURY, CT — She may have posted a score seven strokes higher than Monday, but with numbers going up pretty much across the board, Julia Kemmling of Berlin maintained a two-shot advantage after two rounds of the 61st New England Women's Golf Association (NEWGA) Championship.

Kemmling, who plays at Quinnipiac University, struggled in her second tour of Hop Meadow Country Club Tuesday, recording four bogeys and a double bogey with just one birdie for a 78. Coupled with her 2-under par 71 Monday, she stands at 3-over 149 through 36 holes, two shots ahead of Jacquelyn Eleey (77-74-151), a graduate of the Taft School in Watertown who hails from Quincy, Mass.

Nine players are within 10 shots of the lead, including three others from Connecticut, while three more players from the Nutmeg State are currently in the top 15.

Here is how local players currently in the top 20 stand heading into the final round. Click here for the complete leaderboard, and here for Wednesday's pairings and staring times.

• Julia Kemmling, Berlin, 71-78-149 (1)
• Vienna Winalski, West Hartford, 79-77-156 (T-5)
• Lisa Fern-Boros, Shelton, 80-77-157 (T-7)
• Nikki Liucci, Canton, 75-83-158 (9)
• Mercedese Large, West Hartford, 84-77-161 (T-11)
• Jen Holland, Branford, 76-85-161 (T-11)
• Laitlyn Birch, Ridgefield, 78-84-162 (T-14)

Photo credit: Quinnipiac University Athletics