In almost every aspect of their lives, freshman Alexandra Lederhausen and sophomore Rebecca Lederhausen are polar opposites.
At the SunTrust Lady Gator tournament a week and a half ago, Alexandra awed spectators with her putts. Rebecca managed to hit the ball within a foot and a half of the hole on several occasions, even coming close to a few hole-in-ones.
Alexandra is the class clown, while Rebecca is more reserved. And rather than pull them apart, the sisters’ prominent differences strengthen their relationship.
“They’re really different,” coach Emily Fletcher said. “They don’t live together and they live very separate lives, but they really bring out the best in each other, and their differences help them get along. They complement each other nicely.”
The Lederhausens picked up their first clubs at age five. But their competitive career began several years later.
“I didn’t start playing competitively until I was about 11,” freshman Alexandra Lederhausen said. “It’s a big family sport, so I’ve been around it my entire life.”
The sisters have been playing together their entire lives, and, although they are competitive with each other, they also feed off playing together. It’s a factor that helped them to their first collegiate one-two finish two weekends ago at the Lady Gator.
“There is something about having your sister out there cheering you on and wanting the very best for you,” Fletcher said.
Alexandra Lederhausen shot a 23-over 233 (75-78-80), finishing just one stroke below Rebecca, who led NU with a 22-over 232 (80-74-78).
“I really held it together,” sophomore Rebecca said. “I wasn’t hitting a lot of greens, but I managed to keep it somewhat stable.”
This weekend, both Alexandra and Rebecca will look to replicate their strong performance at the Lady Buckeye in Columbus, Ohio. The course is the same one where the male Wildcats captured the Kepler Collegiate title, and Rebecca said that has been on the minds of her teammates. NU is looking to play even better than its seventh place finish in a 16-team field at the Lady Gator.
With the sisters leading the act, Fletcher believes that is possible.
“I have really high expectations for them this weekend,” Fletcher said. “I want to see them play to their potential.”
