HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Led by a seventh place finish from senior Maria Palacios, the Georgia State women's golf team finished fifth at the UALR Women's Golf Classic on Tuesday at Diamante Country Club. The Panthers shot a final round 318 to finish at 72-over par as no team broke 300 in difficult conditions.
Palacios shot a final round 78 following a pair of 76s on Monday to finish 14-over par. The seventh-place finish marked her fifth top-25 of the year and fourth top-10, including second straight.
“It was just a tough today,” head coach Cathy Mant said. “The wind was blowing and the conditions were difficult and I think it got to us a little bit. Sometimes that just happens.
“The good thing is that we get an opportunity to get right back out on the course to host our own event this weekend. We know that we will have a home course advantage and I think it will give us some momentum heading into the conference championship.”
Senior Melissa Siviter shot a final-round 79 to finished tied for 14th at 18-over, her fourth top-25 of the season.
Senior Laura Sanchez finished at 19-over following a final-round 80 and finished tied for 16th, her third top-25 of the year.
Junior Lauren Court shot an 81 on Tuesday to finish at 21-over and tied for 23rd which was also her fourth top-25 finish of the year.
Sophomore Julie Lied rounded out the Panthers line-up with a final-round 82 to finish 33-over and alone in 67th place.
Middle Tennessee shot the low round of the tournament, a 16-over 304, to earn a nine-stroke win over Oral Roberts. MTSU finished the 54-hole event at 57-over. Wichita State finished in third at 67-over, with Central Arkansas coming in fourth at 71-over, one stroke ahead of the Panthers.
The Panthers finished 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 a final-round 74 to earn low medalist honors at 3-over par. Central Arkansas' Sarah Brown finished second at 5-over following a 71 on Tuesday, the only round of the day under par. Middle Tennessee's Avery George finished third at 8-over, followed by teammate Allie Knight in fourth at 10-over. High Point's Sarah Bae rounded out the top-five at 12-over par.
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.
www.GeorgiaStateSports.com
