With two of the top teams in the country breathing down its
neck, Oklahoma, No. 31 in the latest Golfstat
rankings, hung tough Saturday and will take a five-shot lead into the final
round of the Battle at the Beach at Club Campestre San Jose in San Jose Del
Cabo, Mexico.
The Sooners, with three players in the top six in the
individual standings, fired a second consecutive 3-under 281 over the
6,209-yard, par-71 Club Campestre San Jose layout for a 6-under 562 total.
Lurking just five shots behind them though are reigning
Pacific 12 Conference champion UCLA, ranked No. 1 by Golfstat, and reigning Big 12 champion Texas, better than its No.
13 ranking would lead you to believe. UCLA added a 1-over 285 to its
opening-round 282 while Texas matched Big 12 rival Oklahoma’s 3-under 281 after
opening with a 2-over 286 Friday as both landed at 1-under 567. The top three
are the only three teams in a loaded field of 14 teams under par after two
rounds.
No. 57 Baylor, the tournament host, is alone in fourth place
at 7-over 575 after carding a 1-over 285 and No. 22 Houston and No. 38 Auburn are
tied for fifth at 12-over 580. The Cougars, who had opened with a 1-under 283,
posted a 297 while the Tigers, who had opened with an even-par 288, had a 292.
Former Radnor High standout Brynn Walker and North Carolina,
ranked 24th, struggled to a 300 Saturday and are in 11th
place at 594.
It is a veteran Oklahoma team with one precocious freshman,
although there are so many talented freshmen all around the country, just about
every team has at least one.
The Sooners were led by Hannah Wood, a senior from
Centennial, Colo. who is alone in fifth in the individual standings after
adding a 2-under 69 to her opening-round 70 for a 3-under 139 total.
Two of her teammates are in a group of four players tied for
sixth at 2-under 140. One is Julienne Soo, a junior from Australia who added an
even-par 71 to her opening-round 69, and the other is the Sooners’ stud
freshman, Katie Milligan of Norman, Okla., whose 3-under 68 was the low round
of the day for Oklahoma.
Ana Ruiz, a senior playing in her home country of Mexico,
was the final counter for Oklahoma as she carded a 2-over 73 after opening with
a 70 and is tied for 11th at 1-over 143.
Rylee Pedigo, a senior from Fort Worth, Texas, is tied for
53rd at 151 after adding a 76 to her opening-round 75. Valerie
Tanguay, a senior from Canada who is competing as an individual, is tied for 63rd
at 154 after posting a 79 in the second round.
The individual leader is Wake Forest’s Jennifer Kupcho, a
junior from Centennial, Colo. who is the No. 2 player in the Women’s World
Amateur Golf Ranking. Kupcho had opened with a 4-under 67 Friday and added a
1-under 70 and stands at 5-under 137.
Reigning U.S. Women’s Amateur champion Sophia Schubert, a
senior at Texas from Oak Ridge, Tenn., heads a group of three players tied for
second, a shot behind Kupcho at 4-under 138. Schubert, No. 22 in the Women’s
World Amateur Golf Ranking, matched the low round of the day with a 3-under 68
after opening with a 1-under 70 Friday.
Also at 4-under 138 is UCLA’s Lilia Vu, a junior from
Fountain Valley, Calif. and the No. 4 player in the Women’s World Amateur Golf
Ranking. Vu, a semifinalist in that U.S.
Women’s Amateur won by Schubert at San Diego Country Club last summer, had a
second straight 2-under 69.
Houston’s Leonie Harm, a junior from Germany, rounds out the
trio tied for second a shot behind Kupcho. Harm had matched Kupcho’s 4-under 67
in the opening round and added an even-par 71 Saturday.
One of the players joining Oklahoma’s Soo and Milligan in
the foursome tied for sixth at 2-under 140 is Wake Forest’s freshman phenom,
Emilia Migliaccio of Cary, N.C. Migliaccio added a 2-under 69 to her opening-round
71.
Rounding out the quartet at 140 is Baylor’s Fiona Liddell, a
sophomore from Germany who carded her
second consecutive 1-under 70.
North Carolina sophomore Walker, a two-time PIAA Class AAA
champion at Radnor, had the low round of the day for the Tar Heels, a 3-over
74, that left her in the group tied for 53rd at 9-over 151.
Bryana Nguyen, a senior from Columbia, Md., had opened with
a sparkling 3-under 68 for the Tar Heels, but fell back a little with a 4-over
75. Still, Nguyen is tied for 11th at 1-over 143, not bad playing in
this elite field.
Kelly Whaley, a junior from Farmington, Conn., is tied for
42nd at 7-over 149 after adding a 75 to her opening-round 74.
Joining Walker in the group tied for 53rd at
9-over 151 is the Tar Heels’ freshman phenom – I’m telling you, just about
everybody has at least one – Ava Bergner of Germany. Bergner added a 76 to her
opening-round 75, which isn’t bad, but it’s probably her worst performance of
the fall. She’s been that good.
Rounding out the North Carolina contingent is Mariana Ocano,
a sophomore from St. Petersburg, Fla. who posted her second straight 78 and is
tied for 69th at 156.
No comments:
Post a Comment