TOWSON, Md. – Jayla Kang enjoyed a memorable summer.
 
As soon as Kang exited the plane in Seoul, South Korea and walked through the airport terminal, she saw lots of familiar faces smiling at her. It was the perfect reunion and best trip for Kang, who received lots of hugs from her family and friends.
 
"I haven't been to Korea for about six years and it was quite interesting," Kang said. "I was able to spend time with my friends and family. I went on vacations and had a lot of fun. When I got off the plane and I looked outside and it felt kind of weird at first because I hadn't been there in a while."
 
The Towson University sophomore exercise science major has enjoyed a nice journey from Korea to York Road. Born in Seoul, Kang has spent most of her life living in Surrey, a city in British Columbia, Canada, located south of the Fraser River and north of the Canada–United States border. It is a member municipality of the Metro Vancouver regional district.  
 
"Every summer I usually play in tournaments," Kang said. "This summer was different. I only practiced. The positive side of just practicing is I was still able to train for this season and certain aspects of my game become more solid."
 
Kang's practice has yielded positive results for the Tigers through their first two events especially last weekend at Penn State. Kang finished tied for 28th overall in the three-round event after lowering her score in each round.
 
Kang and Jordan Cornelius led the Tigers with a three-under 75 in the final round. Kang led Towson with three birdies on the afternoon. She birdied the sixth and seventh holes, which highlighted a one-under 35 front-nine performance. For the tournament, Kang led Towson with 33 pars.
 
"The weather was great and course was in great condition," Kang said. "I just really stayed calm throughout the round and stayed strong. (Head coach Shannon Briggs) helped me. She's very encouraging. She is very positive and when I was struggling, she helped me stay positive by giving me a pat on the back. Last year, when things didn't go well, I had lots of negative thoughts. I am more positive this year."
 
The Tigers are back in action this week when they compete in the Starmount Fall Classic hosted by UNC Greensboro. The 54-hole event on the par-72, 6,186-yard course will be contested at the Starmount Forest Country Club on Monday, September 30 and Tuesday, October 1. Joining Kang in this tournament will be Sarah Perine, Erica Han, Jordan Cornelius, Julia Calomiris, Madison Barber and Emma Hix.
 
Kang, who started playing golf in seventh grade, has goals to one day play on the Korean Ladies Professional Golfers Association Tour (KLPGA).
 
 
"My dad really likes golf and he took me out on the range," Kang said. "I really liked it and had fun. I've been playing competitively since then. As I got older, I learned different aspects of the game and that's what I really liked about it. My sophomore year in high school is where I started making big improvements. I played well and I just gained a lot of confidence that I could play in college."
 
In her senior year of high school, Kang won the IMG Junior World Qualifier (72-68) and was seventh in the Golfweek Invitational (+2, -1). As a junior, she finished fifth in the Humber PMG Western junior championship. She won the MJT Fall Series as a sophomore. In addition, she was eighth at the CN Future Links Pacific Championship and had three top 10 finishes out of four events in AJGA events.
 
Kang, who was an honor roll student throughout high school, was attracted to Towson by the family atmosphere of the women's golf team. The transition from western Canada to Towson has been easy for the affable Kang.
 
"When I officially visited the team, they were very friendly," Kang said. "Our bond is strong. They are very welcoming and make you comfortable. They are always there when I need to talk and they listen. I am always with the team and without them I would've felt lonely. They definitely helped me throughout the year.
 
"The professors here are welcoming and caring," Kang said. "They think about the student-athletes and they are caring. The students are also very nice and friendly. Staying in the dorm and I made a lot of friends and have a lot of connections."
 
Away from the course, Kang's hobbies include watching movies and shopping. Her favorite pro golfers are SungHyun Park and InGeeChun. Among her favorites are "The Kite Runner" (book), "Insterstellar" (movie) and Daniel Henney (actor). Going on vacation with her family to Jeju Island is one of her most memorable experiences.
 
"We are excited about competing this week at UNCG," Kang said. "I know what I need to improve on and I am pretty confident. As a team, we've made a lot of improvements and I believe our game is pretty solid. We have to continue to improve and I believe once we do that, we'll be great."

Tigers in the Community
The Towson University athletics department deems community service as one of its highest priorities to give back to the Greater Baltimore area.

- For the 7th consecutive year, the department exceeded 10,000 hours of community service to the Greater Baltimore region, finishing with 11,162 hours of community service in the 2018-19 academic season.

- Towson ranked #1 nationally for community service and won the 2018 National Championship for Community Service through the Helper Helper NCAA Team Works Competition.

- Towson had a 97% participation rate, attended 118 community service opportunities and volunteered with 19 organizations.

- Towson won the 2018 Volunteer of the Year Award from Susan G. Komen of Maryland.