May 2, 2016 STOCKTON, Calif. - The Western Washington University women's golf team is in 2nd place after the first round of the 2016 NCAA Division II West/South Central Regional played Monday at Brookside Country Club.
The Vikings turned in a 7-over-par 295 on the Par 72, 5,931-yard layout and is only one shot back of Tarleton State (+6, 294) for the tournament lead. Sonoma State (+9), Dallas Baptist (+10) and West Texas A&M (+10) round out the team top 5 through 18 holes of competition in the 54-hole tournament.
"I am extremely happy with how the team performed today, especially with how they started right out of the gates without any nerves," said head coach Bo Stephan. "They came out ready and attacked the golf course and did a great job. We put ourselves in position to be in contention and that is exactly what you want after the first day."
Freshman Hannah Drake (Pocatello, ID/Century) leads the way for the Vikings after turning in a season-best round of even-par 72 to hold a tie for 6th place in the 66-player field. Drake carded 10 pars, 4 birdies (tied for 3rd-most in the round) and 4 bogeys in her even-par round. Junior Brooke Branigan (Bellingham, WA) is tied for 11th after shooting 1-over-per (73) in the first round.
"I am really proud of the way Hannah and Brooke led the charge today, especially early in the round," added Stephan. "They really picked us up and contributed two of the best rounds of their season."
Sophomore Jenn Paul (Bellingham, WA) and senior Kristen Hansen (Spokane, WA/Mead) are tied for 23rd place with opening rounds of 3-over-par 75. Paul, the GNAC co-Player of the Year for the second season in a row, carded a team-high 13 pars and added one birdie to her round.
Isabell Jimenez Perea (Tarleton State), Ann Parmerter (Dallas Baptist) and Ana Sofia Benavides (St. Edward's) are in a three-way tie for individual medalist honors after turning in first-round scores of 3-under-par 69.
The Vikings will tee off starting at 9:20 am on the first hole at Brookside. Live results can be tracked throughout the tournament via GolfStat. The top three teams along with the top three individuals not with a team from each super regional will advance to the 2016 NCAA Championships held May 18-21, at CommonGround Golf Course in Aurora, Colorado.
2016 NCAA II Championships West/South Central Regional
Brookside Country Club (Par 72 // 5,931 yards) |
Pos. | Team/Player | | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | Total |
2nd | Western Washington | +7 | 295 | -- | -- | 295 |
T6 | Hannah Drake | E | 72 | -- | -- | 72 |
T11 | Brooke Branigan | +1 | 73 | -- | -- | 73 |
T23 | Jenn Paul | +3 | 75 | -- | -- | 75 |
T23 | Kristen Hansen | +3 | 75 | -- | -- | 75 |
T55 | Audrey Orem | +10 | 82 | -- | -- | 82 |
Pos. | Team | | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Rd 3 | |
1 | Tarleton State | +6 | 294 | -- | -- | 294 |
2 | Western Washington | +7 | 295 | -- | -- | 295 |
3 | Sonoma State | +9 | 297 | -- | -- | 297 |
4 | Dallas Baptist | +10 | 298 | -- | -- | 298 |
| West Texas A&M | +10 | 298 | -- | -- | 298 |
6 | St. Mary's (TX) | +11 | 299 | -- | -- | 299 |
7 | California Baptist | +13 | 301 | -- | -- | 301 |
8 | St. Edward's | +16 | 304 | -- | -- | 304 |
| Academy of Art | +16 | 304 | -- | -- | 304 |
10 | Point Loma | +21 | 309 | -- | -- | 309 |
11 | Chico State | +22 | 310 | -- | -- | 310 |
12 | Oklahoma Christian | +24 | 312 | -- | -- | 312 |
