PHOENIX – The Utah Valley University women's golf team finds itself in a tie for eighth place out of 15 teams after two rounds of play at the GCU Invitational on Monday at Grand Canyon University Golf Course in Phoenix.
The Wolverines are tied for eighth with a 35-over-par 611 after carding rounds of 297 (+9) and 314 (+26) on Monday. By sitting in a tie for eighth, UVU will enter Tuesday's final round ahead of WAC foe UT Rio Grande Valley (614), in-state rival Southern Utah (621), Eastern Washington (621), North Dakota State (623), Montana State (628) and former WAC foe CSU Bakersfield (640).
After firing a 2-under-par 70 during round number one and a 4-over 76 during round two, second-year freshman
Victoria Estrada is leading the way for the Wolverines with a 36-hole tally of 2-over-par 146. Estrada carded four birdies, 24 pars, and an eagle on the par-5 10th hole during Monday's opening round. Estrada's opening-round 2-under-par 70 matches her colligate best and ties for the fourth-best single-round score in program history.
Junior
Bailey Henley also had a solid first day of action at the GCU Invite, as she currently finds herself in a tie for 24th with a two-round tally of 6-over-par 150. Henley posted scores of 72 and 78 on the day, which included carding five birdies during round number one on her way to recording the even-par 72. Henley's opening-round 72 also matches for the best collegiate round of her career.
Freshmen
Anna Lesa (77-79—156) and
Caylyn Ponich (78-81—159) are next for UVU at the event, as they sit in 51st and 62nd, respectively. Freshman
Macy Robertson, who is currently tied for 71st (80-82—162), rounds out Utah Valley's competitors at the GCU Invite.
The host Grand Canyon Lopes lead the event on their home course with a 1-over-par 577 (292-285), while fellow WAC foe California Baptist is in second (303-276—579), and Northern Arizona (298-296—594) and Seattle U are tied for third (301-293—594).
GCU's Tagiralani Luafalealo is atop the individual leaderboard with a 4-under-par 140 (71-69).
After Monday's first round of play, UVU previously found itself in second place in the 15-team event after carding the opening-round 297 (+9). The Wolverines then dropped six spots after recording the second-round 314. UVU will enter Tuesday's final round just seven strokes back of Idaho for seventh place and 11 shots back of UC Riverside and UTEP for fifth.
The GCU Invitational will close on Tuesday with the tournament's final round. Action will get underway at 8 a.m. MT and live scoring will be available by visiting
GolfStat.com.
