University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
NCAA Regional Day 1
Tar Heels Tied For Seventh In NCAA Regional
May 7, 2018 | Women's Golf
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - The sixth-seeded University of North Carolina women's golf team is tied for seventh after round one of the NCAA San Francisco Regional at TPC Harding Park. The Tar Heels fired in 14 birdies Monday to finish the round at 1-over-par 289.
With the top-six teams advancing to the NCAA Championship at the completion of three rounds, Carolina is in solid position through 18 holes. However, with only three shots separating places four through nine it will take a similar effort in the next two rounds for Carolina to make it out of the regional competition.
Carolina started the day on the back nine, which was to the team's benefit as they escaped the holes which sit right on the water by the time the wind began to pick up in the late morning. The Tar Heels would shoot 2-over down that stretch before shooting 1-under on the front nine.
"I was pleased overall," head coach Mann said. "We certainly didn't shoot ourselves in the foot by any means, and we don't have to crawl out from a hole. So, I'm happy about that. I'm pleased with how we played."
It was the freshman, Ava Bergner, who led the Tar Heels over the first 18 holes, and she got particularly hot coming down the front nine. After only making birdie once on the back, Bergner fired in four birdies on the front nine, including on No. 9, to finish the day at 2-under-par 70. She sits in a tie for fifth after her eighth under-par round of the year.
"She was having a good time." Mann said. "We talked with the team about just going out and enjoying the experience. They have worked hard to get here, so they should enjoy it, and Ava definitely seemed to enjoy herself. When she has that kind of attitude, she plays well."
Senior Bryana Nguyen and sophomore Brynn Walker were the next Tar Heels to come through No. 9, both making par on the final hole of the day. Nguyen finished the round one with a 76 and is in a tie for 61st. Walker shot even-par 72 and is in a tie for 25th.
Junior Kelly Whaley was the fourth Tar Heel to complete the course. And just like Bergner, she birdied No. 9, which put her under par for the eighth time this season. Kelly Whaley's 71 has her in a tie for 10th.
Sophomore Mariana Ocano finished out the course for the Tar Heels by making birdie on the final hole as well. She shot a 79 and is in a tie for 83rd.
No. 1 UCLA (-8), No. 4 Kent State (-4), No. 7 Colorado (-4), No. 8 Louisville (-1), No. 2 Stanford (-1) and No. 14 Oregon (-1) are the top six teams in the field after round one. No. 12 San Diego State the Tar Heels are both tied at 1-over in seventh.
ROUND 2: Round 2 of the NCAA San Francisco Regional will resume at 11 a.m. ET Tuesday. Carolina will tee off from hole 1 with No. 12 San Diego State and No. 10 Ole Miss beginning at 11:00 a.m. ET. Live scoring is available at Golfstat.com, fans can follow @uncwomensgolf on twitter for updates throughout the round and a full recap will be available following the conclusion of play.
TAR HEEL SCORES
T5 - Ava Bergner 70 (-2)
T10 - Kelly Whaley 71 (-1)
T25 - Brynn Walker 72 (E)
T61 - Bryana Nguyen 76 (+4)
T83 - Mariana Ocano 79 (+7)
Team Totals: 289, +1 (T7th of 18 teams)
TEAM LEADERBOARD
1. UCLA (-8)
T2. Kent State (-4)
T2. Colorado (-4)
T4. Louisville (-1)
T4. Stanford (-1)
T4. Oregon (-1)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERBOARD
T1. Andrea Lee (Stanford) 66 (-6)
T1. Brittany Fan (Colorado) 66 (-6)
T1. Mariel Galdiano (UCLA) 66 (-6)
4. Patty Tavatanakit (UCLA 68 (-4)
