Women’s Golf Signs Two Elite-Level Student-Athletes
November 09, 2017 | Women's Golf
The Cardinals are adding one recruit from New Hampshire and one from Ireland.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – University of Louisville women's golf head coach Courtney Trimble on Thursday announced the signing of two elite-level student-athletes to National Letters of Intent. The class consists of one of the top talents from the northeast and one of the top international amateurs.
The Cardinals have added Lauren Thibodeau from Hampstead, N.H., and Mairead Martin from Kanturk, County Cork, Ireland, who will both join the program for the 2018-19 season.
"We are excited to announce our 2018 women's golf signing class," Trimble said. "Both players will add great experience and depth to our team immediately. They both possess traits of great teammates as well, and I believe our program will continue to rise with these two players joining our roster."
Mairead Martin (Kanturk, County Cork, Ireland | Scoil Mhuire)
Mairead Martin, a member of the Irish girls U-18 team since 2014, is the highest-rated recruit from Ireland and the No. 9 amateur in the country.
One of the biggest stages in which she has played, Martin sank the winning putt for the Irish Ladies Team at the 2017 Home International matches in England, the first Irish team to win since 2004. She continued that success in the summer, securing a top-10 finish at the French U-21 Championship and winning the Irish Girls Close Championship in July.
Martin, who excelled at a high level throughout her career, is a three-time selection to the Ireland Ladies Golf Union High Performance Panel, an honor for golfers that consistently achieve podium finishes at international events. Martin was one of 10 award winners in 2017, joining one of the current top collegiate golfers in Leona Maguire.
A two-time winner of the Leinster Ladies Championship, Martin first captured the major championship in 2014 as the youngest champion in the history of the event at 14 years old. The 5-foot-1 inch golfer continued to attract attention as one of the premier golfers, earning the 2016 Irish girls Order of Merit, bestowed to players leading the standings following the final tournament of the season.
Recognized as one of Ireland's top golfers, she was invited each year from 2015-17 to the Darren Clarke Champions Weekend, an annual event for the best juniors in the country. She won the 2017 competition, which included match play, and earned the individual victory following an eagle on a par-5.
Coach Trimble on Martin: "Mairead had a phenomenal summer, competing as both an individual and a member of the Irish National Team. Her play this summer was evidence of her ability to compete on the world's highest stage and be successful. Mairead will no doubt have an immediate impact on our team with her wealth of experience on the international level. We are thrilled to have the program's first Irish player joining the team."
Lauren Thibodeau (Hampstead, N.H. | Pinkerton Academy High)
Lauren Thibodeau has enjoyed a successful amateur career that includes numerous individual and team championships.
Thibodeau has won 11 New Hampshire championships, seven-consecutive New Hampshire Women's Golf Association girls state championships and four-straight New Hampshire girls state high school titles. She was the youngest winner of the NHWGA state junior championship at 11 years old, became the first to capture three titles, and set multiple records that included a tournament mark of 7-under-par 66. She also was the first girl in state history to win a state title each year of high school.
In 2016, she was the co-medalist at the USGA U.S. Women's Amateur Qualifier. That year, Thibodeau also won the 2016 NEPGA New England PGA Championship to qualify for the national PGA Junior Championship.
A four-time all-state first team selection, Thibodeau has played three USGA championships over the course of her career, most recently the 2017 USGA Junior Girls Championship.
Thibodeau is also an accomplished student, as she is a member of the National Honor Society in addition to the National Foreign Language Honor Society. She has used her notoriety – on and off the green – in New Hampshire to inspire young female golfers by volunteering to help with the girls golf program and the First Tee of New Hampshire.
Coach Trimble on Thibodeau: "Lauren is excited to be coming to warmer temperatures from the Northeast to join our program! Lauren is a fierce competitor that has great experience playing all over the U.S. She has competed at the highest level in both U.S. Women's Amateur and the U.S. Junior Championship. I look for her game to continue to improve once she gets to Louisville and know that she will add a lot of value to our program.
For the latest information on Louisville women's golf, log on to GoCards.com, or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team's Twitter account at www.twitter.com/UofLWGolf or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/UofLWGolf.
