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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Cameron Jourdan

NCAA Women’s golf regionals: No. 11 Augusta makes NCAAs for first time, Stanford, Rose Zhang run away and more from Wednesday

College golf’s championship season is that much closer to crowning a national champ.

The six regional championship sites that featured 12 teams and six individuals (72 teams and 36 individuals, total) concluded play Wednesday, and there were plenty of stellar performances and even some upsets. The top five teams (30 total) and the top individual (six total) not on a qualifying team from each regional advanced to the national championship at Grayhawk Golf Club in Scottsdale, Arizona, May 19-24.

Below you’ll find a recap, as well as a breakdown of what to watch for from each regional as the final round concludes from all six sites.

Golfweek/Sagarin RankingsWomen’s team | Women’s individual

NCAA Championship: Meet the 30 teams and six individuals who qualified

Athens regional

Winning team: Georgia

Advancing teams: 1. Georgia; 2. South Carolina; 3. San Jose State; 4. Ole Miss; 5. Augusta

Individual winner: Jenny Bae, Georgia

Advancing individual: Leon Takagi, Kent State

Star performance: Jenny Bae and the Bulldogs were cooking at home. Bae, who finished runner-up at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur, won the regional title by six shots and helped Georgia win its home regional by two strokes over South Carolina. Bae shot 13-under 203 for her second win this year and eighth top-five finish. And remember College of Charleston’s Viktoria Hund? She had her second ace is as many days Wednesday.

Keep an eye on: Augusta. Who doesn’t like a Cinderella? The 11th-seeded Augusta women’s golf team is heading to Grayhawk and the NCAA Championships for the first time in program history. With Mirabel Ting as its star player, Augusta held its own in a tough regional and earned a position in the finals.

Palm Beach regional

Winning team: Michigan State

Advancing teams: 1. Michigan State; 2. Duke; T-3. Texas, Northwestern; 5. LSU

Individual winner: Latanna Stone, LSU; Brooke Biermann, Michigan State

Advancing individual: Sara Byrne, Miami

Star performance: LSU. The top-seeded team was below the cut line for most of the final round, but the Tigers had a birdie fest on the back nine with stars Latanna Stone and Ingrid Lindblad leading the way for LSU to find its way into the fifth spot, one shot in front of Arkansas. The Razorbacks had a putt to tie LSU and force a playoff for the final spot, but it lipped out.

Keep an eye on: Duke. The Blue Devils have plenty of experience at NCAAs under Dan Brooks, and Duke seems to be finding its stride as the season goes on. Freshman Andie Smith finished fourth at regionals, and Phoebe Brinker added a T-9 finish. Duke is a team that always seems to find a way to be successful when it matters most, and it looks strong heading to Scottsdale.

Pullman regional

Winning team: Stanford

Advancing teams: 1. Stanford; 2. Clemson; 3. USC; 4. Baylor; 5. Texas Tech

Individual winner: Rose Zhang, Stanford

Advancing individual: Tiffany Le, UC-Riverside

Star performance: It has to go to Tiffany Le. Playing as an individual, Le finished birdie-eagle and was 4 under in her final four holes beat Washington’s Camille Boyd by one shot and advance to the NCAA Championships. Additionally, Rose Zhang won her 11th collegiate title and seventh this season, shooting 19 under.

Keep an eye on: The Clemson Tigers, which have been on a roll come postseason time. Clemson won the ACC title, beating Duke and then Virginia in the match-play final, to capture the conference crown. Then the Tigers continued their strong play in regionals, placing second to only the defending national champions. Clemson is one of the hottest teams in the country heading to Grayhawk.

Raleigh regional

Winning team: Arizona

Advancing teams: 1. Arizona; 2. N.C. State; 3. Wake Forest; 4. TCU; 5. Florida State

Individual winner: Dorota Zalewska, Chattanooga

Advancing individual: Dorota Zalewska, Chattanooga

Star performance: Arizona shot 7 under in the in the final round to move three spots up the leaderboard and knock off host N.C. State to win the regional. It was a strong performance for the Wildcats, with Julia Misemer finishing T-2 at 8 under.

Keep an eye on: Florida State. The Seminoles have been one of the top teams all season long, and they played strong enough down the stretch to move into the fifth spot. Charlotte Heath, Lottie Woad and Amelia Williamson are a formidable trio, and Florida State could make a run to get into match play.

San Antonio regional

Winning teams: Pepperdine, SMU

Advancing teams: T-1. Pepperdine, SMU; T-3. Oklahoma State, Texas A&M; 5. New Mexico

Individual winner: Camryn Carreon, Texas San Antonio

Advancing individual: Camryn Carreon, Texas San Antonio

Star performance: New Mexico. The seventh-seeded Lobos came into the final round two spots outside the cutline, but a 1-over performance, the third best of the final round, was strong enough to vault past Denver and second-seeded Auburn for the final spot.

Keep an eye on: Oklahoma State. The Big 12 champions tied for third with SEC champion Texas A&M. And the Cowgirls are no strangers at Grayhawk, finishing runner-up to Ole Miss in the 2021 NCAA Championships. Oklahoma State has gotten big contributions from different golfers throughout its lineup this spring, and that could be pivotal to make another deep run.

Westfield regional

Winning team: Mississippi State

Advancing teams: 1. Mississippi State; 2. Oregon State; 3. Vanderbilt; 4. Virginia; 5. Tulsa

Individual winner: Amanda Sambach, Virginia; Julia Lopez Ramirez, Mississippi State

Advancing individual: Isabella McCauley, Minnesota

Star performance: Props to ninth-seeded Oregon State, which finished second and only two shots behind winner Mississippi State to earn its first NCAA Championship berth in 25 years. Madde Sund and Chayse Gomez tied for seventh to lead the Beavers. However, in-state foe Oregon, the second seed in the regional and defending national runner-up, finished 10th and is heading home.

Keep an eye on: Amanda Sambach. The sophomore at Virginia won her first event this year at the Annika Intercollegiate and then battled throughout the year, earning win No. 2 at the ACC Championships. She tied with Mississippi State’s Julia Lopez Ramirez at 13 under in the Westfield regional and could vie for the individual national title if her hot streak continues.

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