Golfers at the NCAA Women’s Austin Regional last week were plagued by a mysterious illness that sent a number of athletes to the hospital.
Players from East Carolina University were hit particularly hard after three of the team’s five golfers were unable to play their second round. Dorthea Forbrigd, Kate Law and Lisa Pettersson, as well as Pirates’ coach Kevin Williams, were all sent to the hospital after falling ill.
According to NCAA rules, four of five players must finish any given round for their scores to count. With the Pirates, who are tied for 12th, having only two remaining players, they will be disqualified from advancing in the tournament.
According to Golf Digest, Michigan State was also hit with the bug. Spartans assistant coach Caroline Powes fainted in her hotel and Colorado State women’s coach Annie Young was also hospitalized.
Tournament officials suspected that the virus might have been caused by water from drinking coolers. The coolers were ultimately removed and replaced with bottled water.
