Gamecocks’ Match Play Bid at NCAA Championship Falls Short

SUGAR GROVE, Ill. (USC SID) – South Carolina’s bid for a match-play berth at the 2017 NCAA Women’s Golf Championship fell short Monday after the Gamecocks finished just outside the top eight at Rich Harvest Farms. Carolina, which posted a third-round 310 (+22), finished 10^th and four shots off the top-eight cut line with a 54-hole mark of 923 (+59).

Ainhoa Olarra earned a top-10 finish for the Gamecocks, as the San Sebastian, Spain, native tied for 10th after totaling a 223 (+7). Birdies on No. 2 and No. 6 handed her a share of the individual lead Monday, and a bogey on the par-4 ninth resulted in a front-nine 35 (-1) for the junior. Olarra added another birdie on No. 11 before posting a final-round 77 (+5).

Carolina freshman Ana Pelaez and senior Katelyn Dambaugh tied for 50^th with a three-day mark of 232 (+16). Dambaugh paced the Gamecocks Monday with a 74 (+2) in a round highlighted by a birdie on No. 18, the final hole of the Goose Creek, S.C., native’s illustrious collegiate career. She totaled three birdies on the day and finished with seven for the week. Pelaez tallied 10 pars on her round, six of which came after the turn.

Sophomore Marion Veysseyre placed in a tie for 116^th (246, +30) following her final-round 81 (+9), while Gamecock freshman Anita Uwadia tied for 122^nd (248, +32). Uwadia carded one birdie in round three, tallying it on the par-5 second.

No. 12 Northwestern finished atop the leaderboard at 33-over 897, while No. 1 Stanford (905, +41), No. 7 Arizona State (909, +45), No. 25 Ohio State (913, +49) rounded out the top four spots. Sixth-ranked Southern Cal (T5, +50), No. 3 Florida (T5, +50), No. 17 Baylor (7^th, +53) and No. 14 Kent State (8^th, +55) marked the remaining schools to advance to match play, and Monica Vaughn of the Sun Devils captured the individual title with a three-round total of 217 (+1).

SOUTH CAROLINA RESULTS

T10. Ainhoa Olarra 76-70-77=223 (+7)

T50. Ana Pelaez 75-76-81=232 (+16)

T50. Katelyn Dambaugh 80-78-74=232 (+16)

T116. Marion Veysseyre 82-83-81=246 (+30)

T122. Anita Uwadia 94-76-78=248 (+32)

TEAM STANDINGS

1. Northwestern 301-298-298=897 (+33)
   2. Stanford 311-298-296=905 (+41)
2. Arizona State 311-309-289=909 (+45)
3. Ohio State 311-299-303=913 (+49)

T5. Southern Cal 315-303-296=914 (+50)

T5. Florida 320-302-292=914 (+50)

7. Baylor 311-300-306=917 (+53)
8. Kent State 303-304-312=919 (+55)
9. North Carolina 314-310-296=920 (+56)
10. South Carolina 313-300-310=923 (+59)
11. Purdue 315-306-304=925 (+61)
12. Furman 323-302-301=926 (+62)
13. Texas 317-303-307=927 (+63)

T14. California 319-306-303=928 (+64)

T14. Alabama 328-313-287=928 (+64)

T16. Michigan 315-316-299=929 (+65)

T16. Miami 316-303-310=929 (+65)

18. Duke 325-309-300=934 (+70)
19. Michigan State 317-317-304=938 (+74)

T20. Clemson 321-314-309=944 (+80)

T20. Florida State 325-310-309=944 (+80)

22. Texas Tech 335-313-303=951 (+87)
23. Pepperdine 330-320-308=958 (+94)
24. Oregon 333-319-308=960 (+96)

QUOTING HEAD COACH KALEN ANDERSON

“It was not our day really. We just needed to finish a little better, and we got off to a difficult start as well. The group played really solid all week for the most part, and they fought really hard. Ainhoa had a phenomenal week, and in general we did great. They preserved, and we just didn’t get the job done today. At the end of the day, Kate has carried our program for a long time. She has broken all our records, and I am so proud of the way she has carried herself.”

ROUND CHANGER

Carolina senior standout Katelyn Dambaugh closed her collegiate career in style, carding a birdie on the par-4 18^th Monday. Dambaugh was one of two Gamecocks to notch three birdies in the final round.

NOTABLES

>> South Carolina’s performance this week resulted in the program’s fourth top-10 finish at the NCAA Championship. Three of its top-10 showings at the tournament have come under coach Kalen Anderson.

>> The Gamecocks end their 2016-17 campaign with a 291.48 stroke average, the lowest single-season mark in school history.

>> Senior Katelyn Dambaugh closes her time at Carolina with the best career scoring average (72.67) ever by a Gamecock. Her 71.62 stroke average as a junior and 71.68 scoring average as a senior mark the top-two single-season averages in program history.

>> Dambaugh’s 15 career top-five finishes (2nd) and 21 top-10 showings (3rd) both rank in the top-five all-time in school history.

>> Ainhoa Olarra’s 10^th-place finish marked the fifth-best individual showing at the NCAA Championship in program history. The San Sebastian, Spain, native closed her junior campaign with back-to-back top-10 showings.