Lady Raiders Conclude Betsy Rawls in Fifth Place

Monday, October 17

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Betsy Rawls Invitational

Lady Raiders Conclude Betsy Rawls in Fifth Place

October 18, 2016 | Women's Golf

Final Results Follow @TexasTechWGolf

Texas Tech fired a 3-under-par final round Tuesday to move past both SMU and UNLV

By: Matt Dowdy

LUBBOCK, Texas – Texas Tech used three under-par cards as well as an even-par 72 from Lauren Mason to jump up two spots and finish in fifth place Tuesday at the Betsy Rawls Invitational held at the University of Texas Golf Club in Austin.

Sofia Garcia, Gabby Barker and Mami Yamamoto all fired 1-under 71 final rounds to lead the Lady Raiders to a 3-under 285 that was their lowest of the 54-hole tournament. Tech concluded the tournament with a 17-over 881 after combining to shoot 20-over over two rounds Monday.

"We had a solid week," Tech head coach JoJo Robertson said. "We got off to another slow start but fought our way back after that first round. I think the team is close to playing really well. We face another strong field next week in Wilmington that we're looking forward to facing."

Garcia was Tech's highest finisher as the freshman, who was playing in just her second collegiate tournament, ended the two-day event in a tie for fifth individually. Through her six rounds at the collegiate level, Garcia has shot under-par four times, which also includes her opening-round 70 to start the tournament.

Garcia totaled a 2-under 214 final card that was a stroke back of SMU's Kenzie Wright in fourth place and three from third-place finisher Pimnipa Panthong of Kent State. Dewi Weber of Miami easily held on for the individual title as her even-par final round was more than enough to top Michaela Finn, also of Kent State, by eight strokes.

Barker, who claimed the Betsy Rawls title a year ago for her first collegiate win, finished tied for 16^th overall with a 4-over 220. Yamamoto, meanwhile, chipped in her highest finish of the year in a tie for 34^th at 10-over.

Mason overcame a challenging first day to remain 15-over for the tournament and in a tie for 58^th. Emma Ballard had a 5-over card over the final 18 holes to finish 12-over and in a tie for 45^th place.

The strong final round pushed the Lady Raiders past both SMU and UNLV, which finished in sixth and seventh place, respectively. Tech's final 18 holes was boosted by birdies by all four of its card-counting players at the par-5 fifth as the Lady Raiders led the 14-team field at 5-under on par-5s on the day.

Kent State claimed the team title after rallying past Miami with a 4-under final round that was one stroke better than the Hurricanes. Big 12 foes Texas and Baylor rounded out the top four in front of the Lady Raiders.

Tech returns to the links in just over a week as the Lady Raiders will take part in the Landfall Tradition hosted by UNC-Wimington. The prestigious three-day event runs Oct. 28-30 on the Pete Dye Course at The Country Club of Landfall in Wilmington, N.C.