University of North Carolina Athletics
North Carolina
NCAA Regional Day 3
Carolina Finishes Ninth In NCAA Regional
May 9, 2018 | Women's Golf
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. - The University of North Carolina women's golf team finished ninth at the NCAA San Francisco Regional at TPC Harding Park Wednesday. The Tar Heels shot 2-over par in the final round to finish at 7-over-par 871 for the tournament, just two shots out of the six teams that advance to the NCAA Championship.
After shooting 1-over par on the front nine and with the top five teams several strokes ahead of the field, the team was in a fight for sixth down the entire back nine holes.
Carolina was tied with its pair Louisville for most of the round, but the Cardinals shot 7-under on the final three holes, the Tar Heels bogeyed No. 18 twice and none of the teams from farther up the leaderboard fell far enough for the Tar Heels to claim one of the six spots.
"The team fought very hard today," head coach Jan Mann said. " They never gave up. We were in the hunt the entire time. On the back nine, we were close to sixth place the entire time. Unfortunately, we came out a couple short, but I'm very proud of them. I'm disappointed for the team. I'm disappointed that we can't head to Oklahoma State, but I'm looking forward to a great summer for them in preparation for next season."
Junior Kelly Whaley provided the steady hand for the Tar Heels throughout the round and the tournament. She shot even par on the day to finish even across all three rounds and in a tie for 17th. With the performance, Whaley completes the season with the lowest single-season stroke average in UNC history at 73.24.
"It was a great year for Kelly," Mann said. "I was excited for her in that she ended the season with the lowest scoring average of any UNC golfer in history, and in my opinion Kelly is just going to get better and better. She's going to take those numbers even lower."
Sophomore Mariana Ocano turned in one of the best rounds of her career in her first NCAA tournament, shooting a team-best 1-under 71 in the final round. While she struggled in the other rounds, shooting 79 and 80, her round Wednesday was pivotal to Carolina being in contention for a spot in the national championship.
Freshman Ava Bergner, also in her first NCAA tournament, fired in a 73 Wednesday to back up her round-one 70. She finishes her first regional tied for 29th at 3-over par.
"I thought that Mariana and Ava handled themselves very well throughout the tournament. We talked about this tournament, even though it meant a lot, we play it just like any other event, and they handled themselves very well. For Mariana to come back and shoot 1-under the last day was very impressive, and Ava just had a great first year."
Senior Bryana Nguyen also played a important part in Carolina's final round, making birdie on her first two holes and on two of the last three to keep Carolina in the competition. She and sophomore Brynn Walker both shot 74s in the final round. Walker finished tied for 22nd at 1-over, and Nguyen finished tied for 48th at 6-over par.
"We are going to miss Bryana dearly," Mann said. "She is truly the heart and soul of this team. She has been a great leader, a joy to work with, to coach and just to get to know her and her family has been a blessing for me and the rest of the team."
Stanford (-8), UCLA (-4) Ole Miss (-1), Louisville (E), Kent State (+1), and Colorado (+5) are the six teams advancing out of the San Francisco Regional. Patty Tavatanakit won the individual regional title after shooting 8-under-par 208.
TAR HEEL SCORES
T17 - Kelly Whaley 71-73-72—216 (E)
T22 - Brynn Walker 72-71-74—217 (+1)
T33 - Ava Bergner 70-76-73—219 (+3)
T48 - Bryana Nguyen 76-72-74—222 (+6)
T79 - Mariana Ocano 79-80-71—230 (+14)
Team Totals: 289-292-290—871, +9 (9th of 18 teams)
TEAM LEADERBOARD
1. Stanford 287-287-282—856 (-8)
2. UCLA 280-295-285—860 (-4)
3. Ole Miss 290-287-286—863 (-1)
4. Louisville 287-294-283—864 (E)
5. Kent State 284-290-291—574 (+1)
6. Colorado 284-298-287—869 (+5)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERBOARD
1. Patty Tavatanakit (UCLA) 68-73-67—208 (-8)
T2. Ziyi (Emily) Wang (Stanford) 71-69-69—209 (-7)
T3. Julia Johnson (Ole Miss) 71-72-67—210 (-6)
T3. Marthe Wold (California) 71-70-69—210 (-6)
T3. Mariel Galdiano (UCLA) 66-75-69-210 (-6)
Players Mentioned
