The Pac-12 rivals have been the two best teams in women’s Division I college golf all season.
Through 36 holes of qualifying for match play in the NCAA Championship at Grayhawk Golf Club’s Raptor Course in Scottsdale, Ariz., they were right there, 1-2 in the team standings, respectively, following Saturday’s second round.
No. 1 Stanford backed off a little, adding a 4-over 292 to
its opening round of 1-over 289 for a 5-over 581 total, but the Cardinal
maintained the team lead. No. 2 Oregon, the Pac-12 champion matched par with a
288, the best team round of the day, over the 6,340-yard, par-72 Raptor Course
layout to move into second place, four shots behind Stanford with a 9-over 585
total.
Oregon is coming off a team victory in the Albuquerque Regional at the University of New Mexico's Championship Course.
The ultimate goal is to be one of the top eight teams by the end of Monday’s final round, eight of which will comprise the field for the match-play quarterfinals beginning Tuesday.
No. 1 Stanford continues to be led by the No. 1 player in the Women’s World Amateur Golf Ranking, Rose Zhang, a freshman from Irvine, Calif.
Zhang increased her lead in the individual standings to four shots as she added a 2-under 70 to her opening-round 68 for a 6-under 138 total.
Virginia’s Beth Lillie, a graduate student from Fullerton, Calif. and No. 95 in the Women’s WAGR, and Auburn’s Megan Schofill, a junior from Monticello, Fla. and No. 74 in the Women’s WAGR, were Zhang’s closest pursuers as they were tied for second place at 2-under 142.
Schofill helped the No. 17 Tigers, out of the Southeastern Conference, get a share of third place in the team standings with yet another Pac-12 entry, No. 15 UCLA, as each landed on 10-over 586, a shot behind Oregon.
Auburn added a 2-over 290 in Saturday’s second round to its opening-round 296 while UCLA posted a 3-over 291 after opening with a 295.
SEC champion LSU ranked 14th, also registered a 3-over 291 to move into fifth place in the team standings with an 11-over 587 total. The Bayou Tigers had opened with a 296.
Another SEC entry, Texas A&M, ranked 19th, was two shots behind LSU in sixth place with a 13-over 589 total as the Aggies added a 9-over 297 to their opening-round 292. The Atlantic Coast Conference’s Florida State, ranked 10th, was alone in seventh place with a 15-over 591 total as the Seminoles, coming off a victory at home in the Tallahassee Regional, added a 7-over 295 to their opening-round 296.
Two more Pac-12 teams, No. 7 Arizona State and No. 11 Southern California were tied for eighth place, each landing on 16-over 592. The Sun Devils, playing close to home, bounced back from an opening-round 302 with a solid 2-over 290. The Trojans added a 6-over 294 to their opening-round 298.
Rounding out the top 10 was another SEC representative, No. 27 Georgia, as the Bulldogs rebounded from an opening-round 303 with a solid 3-over 291 in the second round for an 18-over 594 total that left them alone in 10th place, two shots behind Arizona State and Southern Cal.
Backing up Zhang for Stanford was Sadie Englemann, a sophomore from Austin, Texas who cooled off from an opening-round 71 with a 76 that left her among the group tied for 19th place with a 3-over 147 total.
Rachel Heck, a sophomore from Memphis, Tenn. and No. 4 in the Women’s WAGR, posted Stanford’s second-best score of the day as she matched par with a 72 that left her among the group tied for 29th place with a 4-over 148 total.
Heck, who captured the individual title a year ago at Grayhawk and led the Cardinal to the top seed in the match-play bracket, had opened with a 76.
Aline Krauter, a senior from Germany and No. 27 in the Women’s WAGR, added a 2-over 74 to her opening-round 75 and was in the group tied for 41st place at 5-over 149 total.
Rounding out the Stanford lineup was Brooke Seay, a junior from San Diego and No. 43 in the Women’s WAGR as she struggled a little with a 4-over 76 after opening with a 75 and was among the group tied for 56th place with a 7-over 151 total.
Virginia’s Lillie carded a solid 3-under 69 after opening with a 73 to get her share of second place in the individual standings at 2-under 142. Auburn’s Schofill registered a 2-under 70 after matching par with a 72 in the opening round to join Lillie at 2-under.
Leading the way for Oregon was Tze-Han (Heather) Lin, a senior from Taiwan and No. 97 in the Women’s WAGR, as she added a 1-under 71 to her opening-round 72 and was tied for fourth place with Furman’s Anna Morgan, a senior from Spartanburg, S.C. competing as an individual and No. 90 in the Women’s WAGR, at 1-under 143.
Morgan had the same splits as Lin, recording a 1-under 71 in Saturday’s second round after matching par in the opening round with a 72.
Heading a group of five players tied for sixth place at even-par 144 was LSU’s Ingrid Lindblad, a junior from Sweden and No. 2 in the Women’s WAGR. Lindblad, the SEC individual champion, added a 2-under 70 to her opening-round 74.
Lindblad shared second place with LSU teammate Latanna Stone, a junior from Riverview, Fla. and No. 37 in the Women’s WAGR, in the Augusta National Women’s Amateur Championship earlier this spring.
Rounding out the fivesome at even-par 144 were Texas’ Bohyun Park, a freshman from Farmers Branch, Texas, Georgia’s Candice Mahe, a freshman from France, Mississippi’s Chiara Tamburlini, a junior from Switzerland and No. 84 in the Women’s WAGR, and Oregon’s Sofie Kebsgaard Nielsen, a junior from Denmark.
Park matched the low round of the day with a 4-under 68 after opening with a 76. Mahe registered a 3-under 69 after opening with a 75. Kebsgaard Nielsen posted a 1-under 71 after opening with a 73.
This time a year ago, Tamburlini was helping Ole Miss march to the national title at Grayhawk. Competing as an individual this spring, Tamburlini carded a 2-under 70 in Saturday’s second round after opening with a 74.
Virginia sophomore Jennifer Cleary, a Tower Hill School product, added a 6-over 78 to her opening-round 77 and was in a tie for 94th place with a 155 total.
The Cavaliers are right on the cut line for the top 15 teams that will continue on in Monday’s final round as they are tied for 14th place with a 603 total. Virginia would still have some work to do to get into the picture for the top eight that will earn a spot in the match-play bracket.
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