Cleveland State University

In this Celebrate. Recognize. Inspire. series relive the first league tournament championships among our women's programs,
and get to know more about a featured student-athlete from those respective title teams.

On April 25, 2017 Cleveland State won its first-ever Horizon League Women’s Golf Championship, marking the fourth women’s team at Cleveland State to capture a league title. 

After being picked to finish third in the Horizon League Preseason Poll, the Vikings posted a strong regular season, including a trio of top-three team finishes, to enter #HLGOLF championship play with momentum on their side. 

Despite ending the first day of league championship play sitting in fourth place, Cleveland State vaulted to the top of the standings after shooting a 302 on the second day, turning a 15-shot deficit into a one-shot lead heading into the final 18 holes. The Vikings’ second-round score of 302 would mark the lowest round of the tournament, while it also represented the third lowest round in program history.

The Vikings, who had finished in the top-two at the league championships just once before (2009), then used a final-round score of 307 to hold on to the top spot in the standings, capturing the program’s first-ever #HLGOLF Horizon League title following rounds of 319-302-307. 

During the 2017 championship season, the Vikings were led by All-League honorees Kaylee Neumeister and Sophie Kelner, while Rayna Oosterhuis was named to the 2017 #HLGOLF All-Tournament Team. 

Cleveland State would go on to earn a spot in the Columbus Regional during the 2017 NCAA Tournament, becoming the sixth team to represent the Horizon League on the national stage.

The 2017 season would mark just the second time in Horizon League history that the same school captured both golf titles during the same year, as Cleveland State also brought home the title on the men’s side – the fourth of what would eventually be five straight championships for the Viking men.

As a freshman in 2017, Kaylee Neumeister was part of a Cleveland State team that would make a place for itself in the CSU Record Book, capturing the program’s first-ever Horizon League Tournament title. 

A three-time First Team All-League honoree, Neumeister was part of a CSU team that set a program record for single-season team scoring average in 2016-17 (317.2), while her individual scoring average of 78.1 for the year marked the third best single-season mark in program history.

Playing as Cleveland State’s top golfer at the 2017 Horizon League Championship, Neumeister posted rounds of 76–77–78, and capped off her final round with an eagle on the par-5 18^th hole to finish sixth overall and help the Vikings capture the 2017 #HLGOLF title. 

As a freshman, Neumeister recorded four top-five individual finishes and was Cleveland State’s top finisher on five occasions, including claiming co-medalist honors in a February tri-meet between Youngstown State and Oakland. She would go on to record six more top-five finishes during her career, while pacing the Vikings in nine more events. 

Neumeister graduated with a 77.8 career scoring average after playing 87 competitive rounds during her time as a Viking, becoming one of just two Cleveland State players to average 78.0 or better for their careers at the time. In addition, Neumeister is one of just six Vikings all-time to have earned medalist or co-medalist honors during their time in the Green & White.