HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Led by three golfers in the top 15, Georgia State opened play at the UALR Women's Golf Classic in third place, just one stroke off the lead entering the final round on Tuesday. The Panthers shot rounds of 308 and 310 to stand 42-over par on Monday, just one stroke behind Wichita State and Middle Tennessee.
Senior Maria Palacios paced the Panthers with back-to-back rounds of 76 and is tied for seventh entering the final round at 8-over.
Seniors Melissa Siviter and Laura Sanchez shot rounds of 76 and 79 and are tied for 15th with 18 holes to play at 11-over.
The two-day, 54-hole event will conclude at Diamante Country Club on Tuesday with a shotgun start at 9:30 a.m. ET.
Georgia State is coming off a runner-up finish last weekend at the JMU Eagle Landing Invitational where Palacios finished in second place.
“I am really proud of the way the team played today,” head coach Cathy Mant said. “It is a difficult course and it was tough to play 36 holes in one day, however, the team fought hard and has put us in a great position to have a chance to win on Tuesday. At the end of the day, that is what we wanted. We are in the final group and have a chance to come away with a great finish.”
Junior Lauren Court, who tied for the low round of the afternoon for Georgia State, shot rounds of 80 and 76 and is tied for 22nd at 12-over par.
Sophomore Julie Lied rounded out the Panthers line-up with rounds of 84 and 83 to stand in a tie for 71st with one round to play.
Wichita State opened play with rounds of 310 and 307, while Middle Tennessee shot 306 and 311 on the opening day to take the lead. Oral Roberts is in fourth, just one stroke behind Georgia State at 43-over. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi is fifth at 46-over par.
The Panthers are ahead of three Sun Belt schools as the teams are now less than one month away from the conference championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA Regional.
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi's Vanessa Johnson shot the only round under par all day, a 71, following an opening round 74 and is 1-over par and leading the field by five strokes. Central Arkansas' Sarah Brown and South Alabama's Elisa Axelsen are tied for second at 6-over. Middle Tennessee's Avery George, UTEP's Camino Sardinero and Oral Roberts' Alheli Moreno are tied for fourth at 7-over par.
Following the trip to Arkansas, Georgia State return home to host the John Kirk Panther Intercollegiate at Eagle's Landing Country Club, March 29-April 1. It will be the Panthers final event of the regular season. Fans interested in volunteering for the event can reach out to the women's golf office at 404-414-4066.
