Senior Caitlin McCleary (The Dalles, Ore.) shot even-par 72 to take the individual lead after Saturday's first round of the Red Rocks Invitational, hosted by Northern Arizona University at the Oak Creek Country Club.
McCleary, who won two tournaments wire-to-wire in the fall, finished the day one stroke ahead of Shannon Warner of Eastern Michigan and two strokes ahead of Montana State's Leslie McGetrick.
Nicole Gaddie (Salt Lake City, Utah) also posted a top-ten performance in the first round, shooting 76 (+4) to end the day in a tie for seventh place. Lori Pearson (Seattle, Wash.) posted a score of 80 (+8) to finish the first round in a tie for 35th place.
Christine Cook (Yakima, Wash.) shot 81 (+9) over the first 18 holes to end the session in a tie for 41st place, while Shannon Quinn (Shoreline, Wash.) is in a tie for 54th place after shooting 83 (+11) on the first circuit of the course.
As a team, Seattle University posted a cumulative score of 309 (+21) to end the day in second place in the 20-team field, just four strokes behind tournament leader Eastern Michigan. The Redhawks are currently three strokes ahead of third-place Xavier.
The second and final round of the tournament will begin Sunday, March 4, at 8 a.m. local time (7 a.m. Pacific time).