Stanford, playing like it was mad at somebody, continued its
inexorable march toward an NCAA crown on its home course in the Stanford
Regional.
But nobody knows better than Stanford that there are no
guarantees when the NCAA Championship tees off May 22 at the Omni La Costa
Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. There are any number of challengers coming
out of this week’s NCAA Regionals who respect, but don’t fear the Cardinal, not
the least of which is an old Pac-12 rival in …
Big Ten champion Southern California, No. 2 in the
Scoreboard, powered by clippd, rankings and the top seed in the Ann Arbor
Regional, came on strong in Wednesday’s final round to capture the team title
in a tough field that included two of its conference rivals in Ohio State and
defending national champion Northwestern and Atlantic Coast Conference power
Duke, owner of seven NCAA crowns.
The picture of the Women of Troy celebrating their regional
crown on the Southern California website featured a lot of cold-weather gear,
not surprising for mid-May in Ann Arbor.
But behind Elise Lee, a sophomore from Irvine, Calif.,
Southern Cal registered a 1-under-par 283 over the 6,265-yard, par-71
University of Michigan Golf Course, an Alister MacKenzie design, to rally past
Ohio State and take the team crown with a 1-over 853 total.
The Trojans had opened with a 2-under 282 and added a 4-over
288 in Tuesday’s second round that left them a shot behind Ohio State in a tie
for second place with Northwestern.
It was the eighth tournament title in the wraparound
2025-2026 season and seventh straight victory for Southern Cal. It was an NCAA
record 16th regional crown in the history of the program and ran the
Trojans’ string of NCAA Championship appearances to 28 straight, a remarkable
display of consistent excellence.
Elise Lee, who was in the starting lineup for Northwestern
when it stunned Stanford in the NCAA Championship’s Final Match a year ago at
La Costa, finished in a tie for second place in the individual chase for
Southern Cal, a shot behind her old teammate Ashley Yun, a junior from West
Covina, Calif. who captured the individual title with a 5-under 208 total, and
in a tie for second place with another old teammate in Dianna Lee, a senior
from San Diego, Calif. and No. 65 in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking
(WAGR) and the gritty hero of the Wildcats’ run their first national
championship last spring.
Elise Lee added a 3-over 74 in Tuesday’s second round to her
sparkling opening round of 5-under 66 before closing with a 2-under 69 in the
difficult conditions of Wednesday’s final round to get a share of second place
with Dianna Lee at 4-under 209.
Really nice showing for Ohio State, under the leadership of
head coach Lisa Strom, the Pennsylvania scholastic champion as a senior at
Lansdale Catholic in 1994.
The Buckeyes, No. 29 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded
fifth, had added a 6-over 290 in Tuesday’s second round to their opening round
of 5-under 279 and took a one-shot lead into the final round.
Ohio State closed with a 5-over 289 and held onto second
place with a 6-over 858 total that left it five shots behind Southern Cal and,
most importantly, punched its ticket to the NCAA Championship at La Costa.
Duke, No. 10 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded second,
made sure it was packing for Carlsbad, Calif. as the Blue Devils closed with an
8-over 292 to finish eight shots behind Ohio State in third place with a 16-over
868 total.
Duke had added a 6-over 290 in Tuesday’s second round to its
opening round of 2-over 286.
Northwestern, No. 32 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded
sixth, always seems to be playing its best golf at this most important time of
the season and the Wildcats gave themselves a chance to defending their NCAA
title at La Costa by closing with a 15-over 299 to end up a shot behind Duke in
fourth place with a 17-over 869 total.
Northwestern had added a 7-over 291 in Tuesday’s second
round to its strong start, a 5-under 279.
Yun led the way for the Wildcats as she added a 2-under 69
in Tuesday’s second round to her sparkling opening round of 5-under 66 before closing with a 2-over 73
that gave her the individual title with a 5-under 218 total.
Dianna Lee’s clutch gene was very much on display as she
closed with a 3-under 68, the best individual round of the day, to get a share
of second place with USC’s Elise Lee at 4-under 209. Dianna Lee had matched par
in Tuesday’s second round with a 71 after opening with a 1-under 70.
Big 12 representative Texas Tech, No. 48 in the Scoreboard
rankings and seeded eighth, grabbed the final berth to the NCAA Championship
out of the Ann Arbor Regional as the Red Raiders closed with a 17-over 301 to
finish in fifth place with a 22-over 874 total.
Texas Tech had added a solid 1-over 285 in Tuesday’s second
round to its opening round of 4-over 288.
Backing up Elise Lee for Southern Cal was fellow Irvine,
Calif. resident Catherine Park, a senior who is No. 11 in the Women’s WAGR and
finished in fifth place in the individual standings with a 2-under 211 total.
Park posted her second straight 2-under 69 in Wednesday’s
final round after she had opened with a 2-overr 73.
Kylie Chong, a sophomore from Torrance, Calif. and No. 59 in
the Women’s WAGR, finished among the group tied for 11th place at
2-over 215 for Southern Cal as she tallied back-to-back 1-over 72s in the final
two rounds after matching par in the opening round with a 71.
Bailey Shoemaker, a junior from Dade City, Fla. and No. 49
in the Women’s WAGR, finished in a tie for 21st place for the
Trojans with a 5-over 218 total as she registered back-to-back 2-over 73s in
the final two rounds after opening with a 1-over 72.
Rounding out the Southern California lineup was Sarah
Hammett, a freshman from Australia who finished alone in 41st place
with a 227 total. Hammett recorded back-to-back 5-over 76s in the final two
rounds after opening with a 75.
Teams are allowed to bring a substitute to postseason
tournaments and in my post following the opening round, I wrote that Ohio
State’s Kary Hollenbaugh, a senior from New Albany, Ohio and No. 25 in the
Women’s WAGR had to be best bench player in the tournament.
That was not entirely accurate, though, because Southern Cal
had Jasmine Koo, a sophomore from Cerritos, Calif. and No. 13 in the Women’s
WAGR on its bench. Neither Hollenbaugh nor Koo played.
Minnesota’s senior stalwart, Isabella McCauley of Inver
Grove Heights, Minn., will finish her outstanding college career at the NCAA
Championship as she finished in fourth place in the individual standings with a
3-under 210 total to nail down the lone individual berth to nationals from a
non-advancing team available at Ann Arbor.
McCauley surged into contention with a sparkling 4-under 67
in Tuesday’s second round before closing with a 2-under 69. McCauley had opened
with a 3-over 74.
Duke got a nice showing from Katie Li, a junior from Basking
Ridge, N.J. who finished in the group tied for 15th place with a
3-over 216 total. Li added a 2-over 73 in Tuesday’s second round to her
opening-round 72 before matching par in the final round.
Freshman Avery McCrery, a Wilmington, Del. native and winner
of the Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia Junior Girls’ Championship in the
pandemic summer of 2020, finished among a trio tied for 30th place for
the Dookies with a 9-over 222 total. McCrery matched par with a 71 in Tuesday’s
second round after opening with a 2-over 73, but struggled a little in the
final round with a 78.
Sophomore Megan Meng, a scholastic standout at Hopewell
Valley Central in Pennington, N.J., was solid for Northwestern, ending up in
the group tied for 26th place with an 8-over 221 total. Meng added a
1-over 72 in Tuesday’s second round to her opening-round 74 before closing with
a 75.
In the Chapel Hill Regional, Texas, out of the Southeastern
Conference, took control of the team chase in Tuesday’s second round and rolled
to an 11-shot victory over North Carolina, another ACC power.
The Longhorns, No. 5 in the Scoreboard rankings and the top
seed at the UNC Finley Golf Course, surged into first place on the strength of
a 9-under 271 in Tuesday’s second round and closed with a 5-over 285 for a
5-under 865 total.
Texas had opened with a 1-under 279 that left it five shots
behind host North Carolina.
Texas was led by Cindy Hsu, a senior from Taiwan who
finished in third place in the individual standings with a 5-under 205 total
that was a shot behind co-medalists Thanana Kotchasanmanee, Princeton’s
freshman standout from Thailand who captured the Ivy League’s individual title,
and Oklahoma State’s Marta Silchenko, a junior from Latvia.
Hsu held a three-shot lead in the individual standings going
into the final round after firing back-to-back 4-under 66s over the 6,177-yard,
par-70 UNC Finley layout before closing with a 3-over 73.
North Carolina, No. 12 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded
second, trailed Texas by four shots going into the final round as the Tar Heels
matched par in Tuesday’s second round with a 280 after opening with a 6-under
274.
North Carolina closed with a 12-over 292 to earn runnerup
honors with a 6-over 846 total that enabled it to book a return trip to the
NCAA Championship at La Costa.
Oklahoma State, a perennial Big 12 power, closed with its
second straight 3-over 283 to finish two shots behind North Carolina in third
place with an 8-over 848 total.
The Cowgirls, No. 20 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded
fourth, had opened with a 2-over 282.
Silchenko closed with a sparkling 4-under 66 to get a share
of medalist honors at 6-under 204. Silchenko had matched par in the opening
round with a 70 before adding a 2-under 68 in Tuesday’s second round.
Michigan State out of the Big Ten and ACC representatives
Virginia and North Carolina State finished in a three-way tie for fourth place
at 18-over 858 and had to head back out on the golf course for a three-way
playoff for the final two berths to the NCAA Championship.
After the five-hole playoff, it was the Spartans, No. 39 in
the Scoreboard rankings and seeded seventh, and the Cavaliers, No. 35 in the
Scoreboard rankings and seeded sixth, who had the best aggregate scores and
punched their tickets to Carlsbad.
Michigan State had the best team round in Wednesday’s final
round, a 2-over 282 to earn its spot in the three-way playoff. The Spartans had
opened with a 6-over 286 before struggling a little in a 10-over 290 in
Tuesday’s second round.
Virginia also struggled in Tuesday’s second round with a 13-over
293 after opening with a solid 1-over 281. The Cavaliers battled their way into
the playoff on the strength of a 4-over 284 in the final round.
Backing up Hsu for Texas were its two top players, Farah
O’Keefe, a junior home girl from Austin, Texas and No. 4 in the Women’s WAGR,
and Lauren Kim, a junior from Canada and No. 15 in the Women’s WAGR, both of
whom landed among the trio tied for seventh place at 1-under 209.
O’Keefe shared low-amateur honors in the Chevron
Championship, the first major of the season on the LPGA Tour, last month at
Memorial Park Golf Course in Houston, Texas. Her lofty spot in the Women’s WAGR
earned her an automatic bid for the United States side in next month’s Curtis
Cup Match at Bel-Air Country Club in Los Angeles, Calif.
O’Keefe surged into contention with a 5-under 65 in
Tuesday’s second round after she had matched par in the opening round with a
70. O’Keefe closed with a 4-over 74.
Kim was the low Longhorn in the final round with a 3-under
67 to finish at 1-under. She had opened with a 2-over 72 before matching par
Tuesday’s second round with a 70.
Selina Liao, a junior from Taiwan, finished among the trio
tied for 16th place with a 4-over 214 total as she matched par in
Tuesday’ second round with a 70 after opening with a 1-over 71 before closing
with a 73.
Angela Heo, a senior from Murrietta, Calif., rounded out the
Texas lineup as she finished in the group tied for 21st place with a
6-over 216 total. Heo was the picture of consistency at the UNC Finley layout,
rattling off three straight 2-over 72s.
Really nice effort by Princeton’s Kotchasanmanee as she
became just the fourth Ivy Leaguer ever to advance to the NCAA Championship,
all of them Tigers. Kotchasanmanee closed with a sparkling 4-under 66 to get
share of medalist honors with Oklahoma State’s Silchenko at 6-under.
Kotchasanmanee had opened with a bookend 66 before adding a
2-over 72 in Tuesday’s second round.
Richmond, which earned a spot in the field for the Chapel
Hill Regional by taking the title in the Atlantic 10 Championship for a second
straight spring, finished in 11th place as the 11 seed with a
62-ovder 902 total.
Senior Hannah Lydic, a scholastic standout at Sussex Academy
in Delaware, was solid for the Spiders as she closed with a second straight
4-over 74 to finish among the group tied for 37th place with an
11-over 221 total. Lydic had opened with a 3-over 73.
In the Louisville Regional, SEC runnerup Auburn, No. 7 in
the Scoreboard rankings, and seeded second, overtook Houston, the Big 12 runnerup,
to capture the team crown at the Louisville Golf Club with a 17-under 847
total.
The Plains Tigers were led by Anna Davis, a junior from
Spring Valley, Calif. and No. 22 in the Women’s WAGR, as she closed with a 1-under
71 over the 6,384-yard, par-71 Louisville layout to claim the team title with a
10-under 206 total.
The left-hander had surged into contention on the strength
of a sizzling 7-under 65 in Tuesday’s second round that gave her a share of the
lead with Indiana’s Sheridan Clancy, a redshirt senior from Australia, going
into the final round. Davis had opened with a 2-under 70.
Davis was recently named to the U.S. Curtis Cup team that
will battle Great Britain & Ireland next month at Bel-Air because if you
get a chance to add Anna Davis to your team, you just do it.
Behind Davis’ 65 in Tuesday’s second round, Auburn tallied a
15-under 273 in Tuesday’s second round to creep within two shots of
front-running Houston. The Plains Tigers had opened with a 2-under 286.
Auburn matched par in the final round with a 288 to get it
to 17-under.
Houston, No. 30 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded fifth
at Louisville, struggled a little in the final round, but held onto second
place with a an 11-under 853 total that left the Cougars six shots behind
Auburn.
Houston had added a sparkling 13-under 275 in Tuesday’s
second round to its opening round of 6-under 282 to take a two-shot lead into
the final round.
Another SEC power, Arkansas, No. 6 in the Scoreboard
rankings and the top seed in the Louisville Regional, finished a shot behind
Houston in third place with a 10-under 854 total.
The Razorbacks were steady, adding a 7-under 281 in
Tuesday’s second round to their opening round of 4-under 284 before closing
with a 1-over 289.
Big 12 champion Iowa State, No. 8 in the Scoreboard rankings
and seeded third in Louisville, and Mississippi, another SEC representative that
is No. 19 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded fourth, finished in a tie for
fourth place, both ending up a shot behind Arkansas with a 9-under 855 total.
The Cyclones added a sparkling 12-under 276 in Tuesday’s
second round to their opening round of 1-under 287 before closing with a 4-over
292. It earned Iowa State a second straight trip to the NCAA Championship and
only the third trip to nationals in program history.
Ole Miss was steady throughout, adding a 1-under 287 in
Tuesday’s second round to its opening round of 6-under 282 before closing with
a 2-under 286.
The Rebels were led by Kajsalotta Svarvar, a sophomore from
Sweden and No. 82 in the Women’s WAGR, as she finished in third place, a shot
behind Indiana’s Clancy with an 8-under 208 total.
Backing up Davis for Auburn was Molly Brown Davidson, a sophomore
from Springville, Ala. who finished among a trio tied for sixth place with a
6-under 210 total. Brown Davidson added a 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s second round
to her opening-round 70 before closing with a 1-under 71.
Carys Worby, a redshirt senior from Wales, finished in the
group tied for 13th place at 2-under 214 for the Plains Tigers as
she added a 3-under 69 in Tuesday’s second round to her opening round of 3-over
75 before closing with a 2-under 70.
Charlotte Cantonis, a freshman from Tampa, Fla., struggled a
little in the final round with a 4-over 76 to finish in the group tied for 30th
place 1-over 217, but was solid in the first two rounds for Auburn, adding a
2-under 70 in Tuesday’s second round to her opening-round 71.
Rounding out the Auburn lineup was Katie Cranston, a senior
from Canada and No. 100 in the Women’s WAGR who finished in a tie for 50th
place with a 226 total. Cranston added a 1-over 74 in Tuesday’s second round to
her opening-round 75 before closing with a 77.
Indiana’s Clancy will compete in Carlsbad as an individual
after some outstanding play in Louisville. She added a sparkling 5-under 67 in
Tuesday’s second round to her opening-round 68 and shared the individual lead
with Auburn’s Davis going into the final round. Clancy matched par in the final
round with a 72.
In the Tallahassee Regional, perennial ACC power Wake Forest,
No. 9 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded second, came on strong in the final
round with a 10-under 278 at the Seminole Legacy Golf Club to capture the team
title by four shots over ACC rival and tournament host Florida State.
The Demon Deacons had opened with a 3-under 285 over the
6,292-yard, par-72 Seminole Legacy layout and struggled to a 5-over 293 in
Tuesday’s second round that was plagued by delays for rain and lightning. That
left them seven shots behind SEC power and top-seeded Florida going into the
final round.
It was the second straight regional crown for Wake Forest
and it will be making its 11th straight trip to the NCAA
Championship.
Wake Forest was led by Morgan Ketchum, a graduate student
who came home to Winston-Salem after being a standout at Virginia Tech, as she got
a share of the individual title with Florida State’s Sophia Fullbrook, a
sophomore from England and No. 55 in the Women’s WAGR, each finishing with a
7-under 209 total.
Ketchum closed with a sparkling 6-under 66 that helped put
the Demon Deacons over the top and earned her a share of the individual title. She
had matched par in Tuesday’s rainy second round with a 72 after opening with a
1-under 71.
Florida State, No. 25 in the Scoreboard rankings and the
four seed on its home course, matched par in the final round with a 288 to
finish four shots behind Wake Forest in second place with a 4-under 860 total.
The Seminoles had endured the rainy weather to put up a
1-under 287 in Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 3-under 285.
Florida State was led by Fullbrook, who closed with a
4-under 68 to share medalist honors with Ketchum at 7-under. Fullbrook matched
par in Tuesday’s tough conditions with a 72 after opening with a 3-under 69.
Florida, No. 3 in the Scoreboard rankings and the top seed
in Tallahassee, had held a one-shot lead over its in-state rival Florida State
going into the final round as the Gators matched par in Tuesday’s second round
with a 288 after opening with a 5-under 283.
Florida slipped back to third place with a final round of
2-over 290 that left it a shot behind Florida State with a 3-under 861 total.
Mid-American Conference runnerup Eastern Michigan, No. 27 in
the Scoreboard rankings and seeded fifth in Tallahassee, finished in fourth
place and earned a spot in the field for the NCAA Championship with a 5-over
869 total.
The Eagles, making the first appearance in an NCAA regional
in the history of the program, had added a 5-over 293 in Tuesday’s second round
to their opening round of 1-under 287 before closing with a solid 1-over 289.
Kentucky, another SEC representative, made a big move in the
final round with a 9-under 279 to grab the final spot at nationals out of the
Tallahassee Regional as the Wildcats finished in fifth place with a 6-over 870
total.
Kentucky, No. 34 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded
sixth, had struggled in the difficult conditions of Tuesday’s second round,
adding a 300 to its solid opening round of 3-over 291.
The Wildcats were led by C.A. Carter, a sophomore home girl
from Lexington, Ky., who fueled their final-round surge with a sizzling 7-under
65 that left her in a tie for third place in the individual standings with a
6-under 210 total.
Carter had added a 2-over 74 in rainy second round Tuesday
to her opening round of 1-under 71.
Backing up Ketchum for Wake Forest was Chloe Kovelesky, a
sophomore from Boca Raton, Fla. and No. 32 in the Women’s WAGR, as she finished
in a tie for third place with Kentucky’s Carter and Louisiana Monroe’s Johanna
Sjursen, a sophomore from Sweden, at 6-under.
Kovelesky was really solid in Tuesday’s tough conditions,
carding a second straight 3-under 69 that left her just two shots behind
Sjursen in the individual standings going into the final round. Kovelesky matched
par in the final round with a 72.
Junior Macy Pate, another home girl from Winston-Salem, N.C.
and No. 35 in the Women’s WAGR, contributed a 4-under 68 to Wake Forest’s
final-round surge as she finished among the trio tied for 16th place
with a 2-over 218 total.
Pate had recorded a second straight 3-over 75 in Tuesday’s
second round.
Anne-Sterre den Dunnen, a senior from the Netherlands and
No. 93 in the Women’s WAGR, matched par in the final round with a 72 for the
Demon Deacons as she finished in the group tied for 31st place with
a 6-over 222 total. Den Dunnen had struggled in Tuesday’s difficult conditions
with a 7-over 70 after opening with a solid 1-under 71.
Rounding out the Wake Forest lineup was Cartoon Rujiranan, a
freshman from Thailand who finished among the trio tied for 45th
place with a 229 total. Rujiranan added a 5-over 77 in Tuesday’s second round
to her opening round of 2-over 74 before closing with a 78.
Sun Belt Conference champion Louisiana Monroe was unable to
advance to nationals as a team as the War Hawks stumbled in the final round,
but Sjursen will represent ULM as an individual at La Costa as she finished
among the trio tied for third place at 6-under.
Sjursen held the lead in the individual standings going into
the final round as she registered a borderline spectacular 5-under 67 in the
difficult conditions of Tuesday’s second round after opening with a 3-under 69.
Sjursen closed with a 2-over 74.
In the Waco Regional, SMU, riding the wave of its run to the
final in the ACC Championship, captured the team title with a 17-under 823
total at Ridgewood Country Club that gave the Mustangs a six-shot victory over
SEC power Texas A&M.
SMU, No. 21 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded fourth in
Waco, was led by Celine Chen, a junior from Australia, and Kirra St. Laurent, a
freshman from French Polynesia, as they finished among a group of four players
tied for third place at 5-under 205.
SMU closed with a 3-under 277 over the 6,094-yard, par-70
Ridgewood layout to complete a wire-to-wire victory with a 17-under 823 total.
The Mustangs posted a sparkling 11-under 269 in Tuesday’s
second round to their bookend opening round of 3-under 277.
Chen had bookend 3-under 67s in the first and final rounds around
a 1-over 71 in Tuesday’s second round to get her share of third place at
5-under.
St. Laurent contributed a sizzling 6-under 64 to SMU’s
second-round surge Tuesday after opening with a 1-over 71. St. Laurent matched
par in the final round with a 70 to join her teammate Chen at 5-under.
Texas A&M, No. 4 in the Scoreboard rankings and the top
seed in Waco, added a 6-under 274 in Tuesday’s second round to its opening
round of even-par 280 that left the Aggies eight shots behind SMU going into
the final round.
Texas A&M closed with a 5-under 275 for an 11-under 829
total.
The Aggies were led by Vanessa Borolivos, a sophomore from
Canada and No. 21 in the Women’s WAGR, as she captured medalist honors in the
individual chase by four shots with a 10-under 200 total.
Borolivos added a 1-under 69 in Tuesday’s second round to
her opening round of 4-under 66 before closing with a sparkling 5-under 65.
It was another 11 shots back to host Baylor, out of the Big
12, in third place in the team standings as the Bears closed with the best team
round of the final round on their home course, a 6-under 274, to end up with an
even-par 840 total and earn its sixth straight trip to the NCAA Championship.
Baylor, No. 26 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded fifth, had
carded a 2-under 278 in Tuesday’s second round after struggling a little in an
opening-round 288.
Another SEC entry, LSU, No. 36 in the Scoreboard rankings
and seeded sixth, finished a shot behind Baylor in fourth place with a 1-over 841
total.
The Bayou Tigers moved up the leaderboard with an 8-under
272 in Tuesday’s second round after struggling a little in an opening round of
7-over 287. LSU closed with a 2-over 282 to book its trip to La Costa for
nationals.
LSU was led by Francesca Fiorellini, a sophomore from Italy
who joined the foursome tied for third place at 5-under.
Fiorellini contributed a 2-under 68 to the Bayou Tigers’
surge in Tuesday’s second after she had opened with a 3-under 67. Fiorellini
matched par in the final round with a 70.
Tennessee, coming off the first SEC championship in the
history of the program, kept its postseason going by beating Tulsa, the
American Athletic Conference champion, in a playoff to grab the final ticket to
the nationals at La Costa after the two teams both landed on 7-over 847.
The Volunteers, No. 16 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded
third, closed with a 1-under 279 to force the playoff for the final bid out of
the Waco Regional to Carlsbad. Tennessee had added a 6-over 286 in Tuesday’s
second round to its opening round of 2-over 282.
Backing up Chen and St. Laurent for SMU was Emily Odwin, a
senior from Barbados and No. 68 in the Women’s WAGR who finished in a tie for
10th place in the individual standings with a 2-under 208 total.
Odwin recorded a 2-under 68 in Tuesday’s second round after
opening with a 1-over 71 and then closed with a 1-under 69.
Grace Jin, a junior from Huntsville, Texas, finished alone
in 12th place for the Mustangs with a 1-under 209 total as she
matched par in Tuesday’s second round with a 70 after opening with a solid
2-under 68. Jin closed with a 1-over 71.
Rounding out the SMU lineup was Mackenzie Lee, a senior from
North Little Rock, Ark. and No. 46 in the Women’s WAGR as she contributed a
3-under 67 to the Mustangs’ surge in Tuesday’s second round on her way to a tie
for 13th place with an even-par 280 total.
Lee had opened with a 2-over 72 and closed with a 1-over 71.
TCU’s Kiersten Angosta, a junior from Las Vegas, Nev.,
signed for her second straight 4-under 66 in the final round to finish in
second place in the individual standings with a 6-under 204 total that earned
her the lone individual bid to the NCAA Championship to a player from a
non-advancing team. Angosta had opened with a 2-over 72.
Angosta’s runnerup finish also meant it was the end of the
line for Oregon’s Kiara Romero, a junior from San Jose, Calif. and the No. 1
player in the Women’s WAGR.
It was a disappointing week for the Ducks, No. 8 in the
Scoreboard ranking and seeded second in Waco, as they finished in seventh place
in the team standings, failing to advance to the NCAA Championship.
Romero landed in the quartet tied for third place at
4-under, a shot behind Angosta. Romero had matched par in Tuesday’s second
round after opening with a sparkling 4-under 66. But her final-round 69 wasn’t
enough to earn her that lone individual spot.
Which brings us to the Stanford Regional, where the
Cardinal, playing on their home course, the Stanford Golf Course, broke all
kinds of records with a spectacular 42-under 810 total that gave them a 38-shot
margin of victory over runnerup Pepperdine.
Stanford, the ACC champion and ranked No. 1 in the
Scoreboard rankings throughout the wraparound 2025-’26 season, couldn’t have
been much more impressive.
Stanford added a sizzling 17-under 267 over the 6,267-yard,
par-71 Stanford Golf Course layout in Tuesday’s second round to its opening
round of 9-under 275 to take a 19-shot lead into the final round.
The Cardinal proceeded to close with a 16-under 268 to
easily break the team record for 54 holes on their home course. The margin of
victory was also a team record.
Stanford’s lineup all finished among the top six finishers
in the individual standings, led by medalist Andrea Revuelta, a sophomore from
Spain and No. 3 in the Women’s WAGR who defeated her fellow Spaniard and
Stanford teammate Paula Martin Sampedro by two shots with a 12-under 201 total.
Revuelta posted back-to-back 6-under 65s in the final two
rounds after matching par in the opening round with a 71.
Martin Sampedro, the medalist in the ACC Championship at
Porters Neck Country Club in Wilmington, N.C., closed with a 3-under 68 to take
second place with a 10-under 203 total.
West Coast Conference champion Pepperdine, No. 11 in the
Scoreboard rankings and seeded second at Stanford, was the runnerup, although
the Waves weren’t in the same zip code as Stanford with a 4-under 848 total.
Pepperdine added a solid 6-under 248 in Tuesday’s second
round to its opening round of 1-under 283 before closing with a 3-over 287.
The Waves were led by Jeneath Wong, a senior from Australia
and No. 92 in the Women’s WAGR, as she elbowed her way among all those Stanford
stars by finishing in third place, a shot behind Martin Sampedro with a 9-under
204 total.
Wong rocketed up the leaderboard on the strength of an
8-under 63 in Tuesday’s second round after she had matched par in the opening
round with a 71. Wong closed with a 1-under 70.
Oregon State, the runnerup to Pepperdine in the WCC, outperformed
its No. 50 spot in the Scoreboard rankings and its nine seed, to punch its
ticket to the NCAA Championship as the Beavers finished in third place with a
2-over 854 total.
Oregon State recorded a 1-over 285 in Tuesday’s second round
after getting off to a great start with a 5-under 279. The Beavers closed with
a 6-over 290.
Arizona State, out of the Big 12, matched par in the final
round with a 284 to finish two shots behind Oregon State in fourth place with a
4-over 856 total and reach the NCAA Championship for the 40th time,
more than any other program.
The Sun Devils, No.22 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded fourth
at Stanford, had added a 2-under 282 in Tuesday’s second round to their opening
round of 6-over 290.
Missouri, on the other hand, grabbed the final berth to La
Costa out of the Stanford Regional for just its second appearance at nationals as
the Tigers closed with a 2-over 286 to finish in fifth place, four shots behind
Arizona State with an 8-over 860 total.
Missouri had matched par in Tuesday’s second round with a
284 after opening with a 6-over 290.
Backing up Revuelta and Martin Sampedro for Stanford was Kelly
Xu, a senior from Claremont, Calif. and No. 18 in the Women’s WAGR – she is the
lowest-ranked player in the Stanford lineup – as she finished a shot behind
Pepperdine’s Wong in fourth place with an 8-under 205 total.
Xu contributed a 4-under 67 to Stanford’s sizzling
second-round performance and a 3-under 68 to the Cardinal’s blazing finish. Xu
had opened with a 1-under 70.
Meja Ortengren, a sophomore from Sweden and No. 6 in the
Women’s WAGR, gave Stanford a fourth top-five finisher as she finished a shot
behind her teammate Xu in fifth place with a 7-under 206 total.
Ortengren had three rounds in the 60s, including
back-to-back 2-under 69s in the final two rounds after opening with a 3-under
68.
Rounding out the Stanford lineup was the pride of Holmdel,
N.J., Megha Ganne, once the freshman phenom and now a senior putting the
finishing touches on a tremendous amateur career.
Ganne, No. 10 in the Women’s WAGR, closed with a sparkling
5-under 66 to finish among the trio tied for sixth place with a 6-under 207
total. Ganne had matched par with a 71 in Tuesday’s second round after opening
with a 4-under 67.
Disappointing week for Angelina Tolentino, the former scholastic
standout at Lenape in South Jersey who is a sophomore at SEC power Vanderbilt,
and the Commodores.
Vanderbilt, No. 13 in the Scoreboard rankings and seeded
third, finished in sixth place with a 13-over 868 total.
Tolentino, the Pennsylvania Women’s Amateur champion in 2024
at Waynesborough Country Club was subbed out in Tuesday’s second round after opening
with a 4-over 75. She was back in the lineup for Wednesday’s final round, but
struggled to a 79.