Led by Maria Jose Martinez, a sophomore from Mexico,
reigning American Athletic Conference champion Houston came roaring from behind
to capture the team title in the Mason Rudolph Women’s Championship, which
concluded Sunday at the Vanderbilt Legends Club’s North Course in Franklin,
Tenn.
Martinez fired a final round of 3-under-par 69 over the
6,460-yard, par-72 North Course to gain a share of second place in the
individual standings and help the Cougars finish with a 4-under 284 that gave
them a two-shot edge over host Vanderbilt out of the Southeastern Conference
and Clemson out of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Houston had opened with a 5-over 287 Friday and its 7-over
295 in Saturday’s second round left it seven shots out of the lead and in sixth
place in the 15-team field. But the final-round surge by the Cougars Sunday
gave them a 2-over 866 total.
Vanderbilt, which claimed the team title in the NCAA Auburn
Regional last spring, had a share of the lead after two rounds on its home
course. A final-round of 5-over 293 left the Commodores two shots behind
Houston at 4-over 868 with a share of second place with Clemson. The Tigers
closed with a solid 2-over 290.
Vanderbilt’s SEC rival Auburn was another three shots behind
the Commodores and Clemson in fourth place at 7-over 871 after closing with a
2-over 290. Charlotte, which had a share of the lead with Vanderbilt heading
into the final round, fell back with a 12-over 300 to finish alone in fifth
place at 11-over 875.
North Carolina finished seventh in a tightly bunched
leaderboard at 14-over 878, just three shots out of fifth place. The Tar Heels,
coming off a disappointing ninth-place finish in their season-opening
appearance in the Cougar Classic, matched par in the opening round with a 288 and
added a 4-over 292 in Saturday’s second round before finishing up with a 10-over
298.
Martinez was solid all weekend for Houston, opening with a
2-under 70 and adding a 1-over 73 in the second round before her closing 69
gave her a 4-under 212 total that left her in a tie for second, two shots
behind individual champion Tunrada Piddon, a freshman at Central Florida from
Thailand.
Hannah Screen, a sophomore from the United Kingdom, backed
up Martinez as she closed with a 1-under 71 to finish among a trio of players
tied for fifth in the individual scoring at 2-under 214. Screen was the
qualifying medalist in this summer’s Women’s Amateur Championship at Royal
County Down in Northern Ireland.
Karen Fredgaard, a freshman from Denmark, made an impressive
collegiate debut as she gave the Cougars a third finisher among the top eight.
Fredgaard followed up a pair of 1-under 71s in the first two rounds with a
final-round 73 as she ended up in a tie for eighth place at 1-under 215.
The other members of Houston’s starting five, Brooke
McDougail, a senior from The Woodlands, Texas, and Annie Kim, a sophomore from
South Korea, both landed among the group tied for 66th at 231.
McDougail, a transfer from Texas Christian making her debut
with the Cougars, might have had as much to do with Houston winning the team
title as anyone as she bounced back from a second-round 84 to post a sparkling
1-under 71 in the final round. Kim was solid all weekend, closing with a 77.
Piddon, in just her second start for UCF, earned her first
collegiate victory by bettering par in each round. She opened with a 2-under 70
and added a 1-under 71 before closing with a 3-under 69 for a 6-under 210
total.
Sharing second place with Houston’s Martinez, two shots
behind Piddon at 4-under 212, was Vanderbilt’s Abbey Carlson, a senior from
Lake Mary, Fla. Carlson, the defending individual champion, had opened with a
4-under 68 and added a 2-under 70 and stood in second place heading into the
final round, but fell back Sunday with a 2-over 74.
Carlson’s teammate, Morgan Baxendale, a junior from
Windermere, Fla., was another shot behind Carlson and Martinez in fourth place
at 3-under 213 after closing with a solid 2-under 70.
Sharing fifth place with Houston’s Screen at 2-under 214 were
Mississippi State’s Aubree Jones, a junior from Covington, Tenn., and
Charlotte’s Ashley Fowler, a junior from Germany.
Jones carded a 3-under 69 in the final round to move up the
leaderboard. Fowler had the lead heading into the final round after adding a
5-under 67 to her opening-round 70. But she backed off in the final round with
a 5-over 77.
Joining Houston’s Fredgaard in the tie for eighth place at
1-under 215 was Northwestern’s Brooke Riley, a senior from Manteca, Calif.
Riley was in the hunt for the individual title after adding a 69 to her
opening-round 71, but she fell back with a final-round 75.
Leading the way for North Carolina was Kayla Smith, a
freshman from Burlington, N.C. who joined the group tied for 12th
place at 1-over 217. Smith bettered par in the second round with a 2-under 70
after opening with a 1-over 73. She closed with a 2-over 74.
Senior Brynn Walker, a two-time PIAA Class AAA champion at
Radnor, was the Tar Heels’ best player in Friday’s opening round with a 3-under
69 and in Sunday’s final round with an even-par 72. Walker, who captured the
Women’s Golf Association of Philadelphia Match Play Championship on her home
course at St. Davids Golf Club this summer, was not as good in Saturday’s
second round with a 7-over 79. She ended up among the group tied for 23rd
at 4-over 220.
Ava Bergner, a junior from Germany, finished among the group
tied for 38th at 224 after closing with a 77. Bergner opened with a
1-over 73 and added a 2-over 74 in the second round.
Krista Junkkari, a freshman from Finland, and Nicole Lu, a
sophomore from Taiwan, both landed in the group tied for 46th at
226.
Junkkari, who had been the Tar Heels’ best finisher in her
collegiate debut in the Cougar Classic, opened with a solid 73 before
struggling a little in the second and third rounds with respective scores of 77
and 76. Lu’s weekend featured a 1-under 71 in Saturday’s second round before
she closed with a 76.
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