Oct. 25, 2015

Tournament Results

WILMINGTON, N.C. – South Carolina women’s golf posted its best round of the fall on Sunday at the Landfall Tradition as the team shot 283 (-5) in the third round, finishing the event in ninth place (888, +24). Three Gamecocks were under-par in the final round, led by junior Katelyn Dambaugh (68, -4), who finished in a tie for second on the individual leaderboard.

After consecutive rounds of 72 to open the event, Dambaugh fired six birdies on Sunday, including four on the front-nine, to surge up the leaderboard. Her Par-5 scoring average (4.33) led the field, and her 14 birdies were second most at the three-day event. It was Dambaugh’s second top-five finish of the fall and sixth of her career.

Senior Sarah Schmelzel had an impressive final round as well, carding a 2-under (70) to move up seven spots in the individual standings. After opening the tournament with a 1-under (71) and a 5-over (77), she connected on six birdies Sunday to finish tied for 16th for the tournament at 2-over. This marks the second time this fall Schmelzel has earned a top-20 finish.

Sophomore Ainhoa Olarra provided another bright spot for the Gamecocks Sunday as she recorded four back-nine birdies on her way to a career-best round of 70 (-2). Her third round moved her up 21 spots on the individual leaderboard into a tie for 53rd.

Freshman Isidora Nilsson connected on four birdies in the third round and was at 1-under (35) at the turn, carding a +3 (75) on the day. She finished tied for 65th at +15. Meanwhile, junior Jia Xin Yang (76, +4) shot her best round of the weekend Sunday to close the event at +21, tied for 83rd.

No. 2 Duke posted a three-day score of 287-284-284 (-9), winning the event by 11 strokes over second-place Notre Dame. Michigan State’s Sarah Burnham claimed the top spot on the individual leaderboard after firing a 66 in the third round.

QUOTABLE
South Carolina Head Coach Kalen Anderson
“A very strong overall team effort today, and a solid way to end the fall season. Katelyn (Dambaugh) and Sarah (Schmelzel) both had a tremendous semester, and I was very proud of the way Ainhoa (Olarra) finished up her last two events. We will get a little rest, but we will be hitting it hard in the off-season.”

UP NEXT
South Carolina begins its spring slate at the Florida State Match-Up in Tallahassee, Fla., February 2-4. Follow the team’s official Twitter account (@GamecockWGolf) for team news and updates.

SOUTH CAROLINA RESULTS
T2. Katelyn Dambaugh 75-75-68=212 (-4)
T16. Sarah Schmelzel 71-77-70=218 (+2)
T53. Ainhoa Olarra 81-77-70=228 (+12)
T65. Isidora Nilsson 78-78-75=231 (+15)
T83. Jia Xin Yang 80-81-76=237 (+21)

TEAM STANDINGS
1. Duke 287-284-284=855 (-9)
2. Notre Dame 291-294-281=866 (+2)
3. Oklahoma State 289-292-286=867 (+3)
4. Michigan State 291-306-275=872 (+8)
5. Alabama 299-286-297=882 (+18)
6. North Carolina State 295-311-279=885 (+21)
7. Wake Forest 303-294-289=886 (+22)
8. Purdue 296-300-291=887 (+23)
9. South Carolina 301-304-283=888 (+24)
T10. UNC Wilmington 290-297-302=889 (+25)
T10. Clemson 298-306-285=889 (+25)
12. Virginia 301-303-286=890 (+26)
13. Penn State 305-302-285=892 (+28)
14. North Carolina 308-303-290=901 (+37)
15. Ohio State 303-303-297=903 (+39)
16. UCF 308-307-295=910 (+46)
17. Kentucky 307-323-292=922 (+58)
18. Elon 303-316-308=927 (+63)