USC wins Regional Challenge, OU eighth and Cowgirls 12th
The University of Oklahoma women’s golf team carded a 297 (+13) in the third and final round of the Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge in Palos Verdes Estates, Calif., on Tuesday to finish eighth in the 16-team field. The tournament featured 11 teams in Golfweek’s top 25.
The eighth-ranked Sooners finished with a three-round 893 (+41) team total. No. 1-ranked USC (+14) won the tournament, played at the par-71 Palos Verdes Golf Club, finishing seven strokes ahead of No. 3-ranked Duke (+21), which came in second. No. 7-ranked Arizona State (+23) finished third while No. 2-ranked UCLA and No. 4-ranked Washington tied for fourth at 29 over.
Seniors Chirapat Jao-Javanil and Anne-Catherine Tanguay led the Sooners in the third round, each carding a 72 (+1). It marked the best round of the tournament for both golfers. Jao-Javanil tied for 26th place individually while Tanguay jumped 17 spots from Monday to tie for 57th place.
Alexandra Kaui logged a final-round 75 (+4) and was the Sooners’ highest finisher in the event, tying for third with four other competitors. The freshman recorded a three-round 215 (+2) and has finished in the top 20 in all five of her career tournaments.
Senior Emily Collins carded a 78 (+7) on the day, and tied for 68th place at 19 over. Freshman Maggie Neece finished with a three-round 243 (+30) after shooting a final-round 79 (+8) and placed 86th in the tournament.
Other Big 12 teams competing in the tournament were Baylor (finished seventh), Texas (11th) and Oklahoma State (12th).
Fifth-year OU head coach Veronique Drouin-Luttrell said her squad found positives to take away from the event despite the middle-of-the-pack finish.
"This was a tough tournament for us but we had some good scores today," Drouin-Luttrell said. "We definitely know what we will be working on before our next event. AC (Tanguay) and Chirapat (Jao-Javanil) had a good 18 holes and I am happy they were able to play well in the final round. Alexandra (Kaui) had a great week with her top-three finish."
The Sooners will return to action March 7-9 when they travel to Hilton Head, S.C., for the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate.