HANAHAN, S.C. (UCFKnights.com) – The No. 21 UCF women's golf team notched its third-consecutive top-10 finish of the season, taking fifth at the Cougar Classic Tuesday. The Black and Gold led the field in par-three scoring with an average tally of 2.95 and was second in total birdies with 56.
"I'm really pleased with the way we have started this year," head coach Emily Marron said. "We've been competitive from start to finish in every event and that's a great sign. We have a tough bunch who really come out to compete every single day."
Four Knights finished in the top-25 among individuals, including senior Johanna Larsson who tied for 22nd and led UCF in the final round with a 71 (-1).
Larsson turned her second-straight sub-par round this week notching her best 18-hole total since becoming a Knight. It was her cleanest card of the season, as she racked up 15-consecutive pars before finding a birdie on the par-5 18th and adding two more pars to close out the round.
"Johanna [Larsson] has been a huge part of our success this year," Marron explained. "She has really worked hard on her game and it's paying off. I'm proud of how far she has come in just one year."
Senior Ashley Holder turned in theKnights best overall performance, finishing tied for 11th netting a three day total of 212 (-4). Freshman Maria Balcazar finished just two-shots behind Holder with a 214 (-2) and tied for 16th. The pair each claimed their second top-20 performance of the year.
Senior Ayaka Nakayama matched Larsson's three-day total and also tied for 22nd while junior Kaeli Jones finished tied for 31st. Sophomore Nicolette Donovan fired a final round 73 (+1) competing as an indicidual, but finished 100th after a tough start in the first two rounds.
The Knights (-8) started the final round in third but were unable to fend off advancing Wake Forest (-13) and Florida State (-9) who finished third and fourth respectively. North Carolina (-26) took home the team trophy while Furman (-18) was the runner up.
Next up, the Knights will head to Wilmington, N.C. for the Landfall Tradition Oct. 28-30.
UCF Individual Scores - Cougar Classic
Player | Rd. 1 | Rd. 2 | Rd. 3 | Total | To Par |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
T11. Ashley Holder | 71 | 68 | 73 | 212 | -4 |
16. Maria Balcazar | 69 | 73 | 72 | 214 | -2 |
T22. Johanna Larsson | 74 | 71 | 71 | 216 | E |
T22. Ayaka Nakayama | 70 | 73 | 73 | 216 | E |
T31. Kaeli Jones | 74 | 71 | 73 | 218 | +2 |
100. *Nicolette Donovan | 77 | 84 | 73 | 234 | +18 |
*Competed as an individual
Team Scores - Cougar Classic
Team | Rd. 1 | Rd. 2 | Rd. 3 | Total | To Par |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1. North Carolina | 281 | 278 | 279 | 838 | -26 |
2. Furman | 278 | 280 | 288 | 846 | -18 |
3. Wake Forest | 282 | 285 | 284 | 851 | -13 |
5. UCF | 284 | 283 | 289 | 856 | -8 |