UVA finishes first round of NCAA Regional in fourth place

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

The No. 8 Virginia women’s golf team completed the first round of the NCAA Ann Arbor Regional tied for fourth place. The Cavaliers shot 10-over 294 to be tied with No. 5 San Jose State, the region’s top seed, after the opening 18 holes of play. Arkansas, ranked No. 20, leads the 12-team field at 7-over 291 while No. 43 Washington and No. 18 Michigan are tied for second at 9-over 293.

The top four teams from the regional will advance to the NCAA Championships. The 54-hole tournament runs through Wednesday.

The Cavaliers held the tournament lead late in their round before a poor showing on the University of Michigan Golf Course’s 18th hole cost them multiple strokes. UVA’s four scoring players played the par four hole at a combined 5-over par.

UVA was led during the opening round by a trio of players who shot 1-over 73. Freshman Amanda Sambach, sophomore Jennifer Cleary and junior Celete Valinho finished the first round tied for 13th place. Graduate student Beth Lillie was in 32nd place after posting a score of 75. Sophomore Rebecca Skoler was 38th with an opening-round score of 76.

“This course requires focus on every single shot,” said UVA head coach Ria Scott. “We let a few big numbers get away from us and need to minimize those mistakes tomorrow.

“We talked to the team about how different these par fives are, as par is a good score on most of them. They aren’t “attack” par fives like we are used to, as shown by the fact no team was under par on them. We are in good position and look forward to cleaning up our rounds tomorrow.”

Tuesday’s second round will start at 8 a.m. The Cavaliers will be paired with San Jose State and Xavier during Tuesday’s play.

NCAA Ann Arbor Regional

University of Michigan Golf Course

Ann Arbor, Mich.

Par 71, 6,265 yards

First Round Results

Team Results

1. Arkansas        291
2. Washington      293
3. Michigan        293
4. Virginia        294
5. San Jose State  294
6. Xavier          299
7. North Carolina  299
8. Ohio State      300
9. Pepperdine      300
10. UCF             300
11. Virginia Tech   302
12. Oakland         316

Individual Leaders

1. Ela Anacona, Arkansas              69
2. Jana Melichova, Old Dominion       69
3. Natasha Andrea Oon, San Jose State 70
4. Stefanie Deng, Washington          70

Virginia Results

13. Amanda Sambach  73
14. Celeste Valinho 73
15. Jennifer Cleary 73
16. Beth Lillie     75
17. Rebecca Skoler  76