Fantastic Finish

Oct. 6, 2014

UCF Athletics Social Media Directory

By Bill Morrison
UCFKnights.com

NORMAN, Okla. (UCFKnights.com) - The Knights moved up four spots in the final round of the Schooner Fall Classic Monday, finishing fifth overall against a field loaded with talent.

Mississippi State jumped out to a big lead in the first round and never looked back with top-ranked Arkansas finishing runner up. Texas A&M came in third while Kent State held off the UCF charge, taking fourth by just a single shot.

Sophomore Ayaka Nakayama and freshman Laura Sojo each shot career-low rounds of 66 (-4) to close out the tournament for the UCF.

Both players came out of the box fast for the Knights. Sojo played a flawless front nine posting four birdies and five pars. Nakayama birdied four of her first five holes, before adding two more on the back nine.

I got off to great start today, Nakayama said. Then I just kept playing one hole at a time, trying to make as many birdies as I could.

UCF head coach Emily Marron was pleased to have such a strong performance from the two youngsters. She believes the way they played shows a lot of promise for the future.

While Nakayama and Sojo's rounds were crucial, it took the entire team playing well to finish in the top five.

Following a career-low in round two, Ashley Holder turned in another solid score of even par. Monifa Sealy also finished strong, carding a 69 (-1) to round out the scoring for the Knights. Sealy was the most consistent for the Knights, shooting low in all three rounds and finishing tied for 16th on the individual leaderboard.

I'm really proud of the team for their fight, Marron said. We have been talking a lot about finishing better and they played great today.

Up next for UCF will be the Mercedes-Benz Championship, October 17-19 in Knoxville, Tenn.