The No. 14/9 University of Redlands women's golf team displayed its talent with a first-place showing at the CLU Regals Invitational at the Sunset Hills Country Club in Thousand Oaks on Monday and Tuesday. The Bulldogs set the tone on day one with a team score of 321 and then shot a 326 on day two to finish with an overall score of 647 for a 23-stroke lead over second place.
After the opening 18 holes, sophomore Annie Hay (University Place, WA) and first-year Kendall Nicholson (Bellevue, WA) co-led the tournament with rounds of 77. Another solid score of 79 on day two landed Hay atop the leaderboard with an overall score of 156, while Nicholson turned in her scorecard with a second-place score of 159. Individually, Hay led the field of 51 competitors in par-three and par-four scoring en route to registering 21 pars and two birdies. Nicholson impressed in the par fives by finishing with a plus-one average of 5.13 to go along with 18 pars and three birdies.
Sophomore Mariah Moon (La Quinta, CA) tied for third at the tournament with an overall score of 162 on rounds of 80 and 82. She ended the event in third for par-four scoring and joined Hay at the top of the list for pars with 21.
Despite an opening score of 87, senior Keilee Bessho (La Cañada, CA) improved four strokes on day two to finish in an 11th-place tie with a 171. She recorded 15 pars in the process. First-year Dana Condon (Palm Desert, CA) remained consistent with rounds of 88 on each day to sign her scorecard with a 176 tally. She also knocked in two birdies. Finally, sophomore Makayla Sugidono (Scottsdale, AZ)) scored 92 and 80 for 27th place.
As a team, the Bulldogs led with nine birdies and 87 pars. The next closest school was Whitman College (WA) with seven birdies and 69 pars.
Redlands heads to Peoria, Arizona, for the George Fox Westbrook Invitational on Saturday, March 16, and Sunday, March 17.