Lady Raiders Finish Third at Big 12 Championships

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Lady Raiders Finish Third at Big 12 Championships

April 23, 2017 | Women's Golf

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Sofia Garcia earned All-Big 12 honors after finishing tied for seventh overall Sunday afternoon

By: Texas Tech Athletics Communications

SAN ANTONIO, Texas – No. 27 Texas Tech matched its highest finish all-time at the Big 12 Championships on Sunday as the Lady Raiders ended the three-day tournament in third place following an 8-over 296 final round at The Dominion Country Club.

The Lady Raiders, who previously placed third at the 1999 and 2015 events, crept into second place throughout portions of the final round before finishing 30-over for the tournament, nine strokes back of team champion Texas and two back of second-place Iowa State.

"I'm proud of how we played," said Tech head coach JoJo Robertson, who has led the Lady Raiders to a top-three finish twice in the last three years. "Texas and Iowa State had another great rounds (today) but we're happy where we are. We fought like crazy to get to third, so we can't be disappointed."

The Cyclones jumped up the leaderboard over the final day following a 4-over round that marked the lowest for the entire nine-team field over the course of the weekend. Texas closed out its first Big 12 crown since 2011 thanks to a 6-over final round, its second in as many days.

Sofia Garcia signed Tech's lowest final-round card after collecting birdies on two of her first three holes en route to a 1-under 71 round. The under-par round earned the freshman All-Big 12 honors as she placed seventh individually at 6-over for the tournament.

"Being a freshman, I didn't really know what to expect," said Garcia, who recorded her third top-10 finish of the season. "Today was a good day for me, coming back again and being able to play a good round."

Lauren Mason and Mami Yamamoto also recorded top-20 finishes as Mason's 6-over final round dropped her into a tie for 12th at 8-over while Yamamoto finished a stroke back in a tie for 17th overall. Yamamoto had a 3-over score over the final 18 holes.

The Lady Raiders' other two contributing scores came from Gabby Barker and Cara Barker, who were 2-over and 4-over, respectively, on the afternoon. Gabby Barker, who was just 4-over during the final 36 holes, finished tied for 27th at 14-over for the tournament while Barker was two strokes back in 34th place.

Tech edged fourth-place Oklahoma State by three strokes on the final leaderboard while Baylor rounded out the top five with a plus-36 card. TCU closed the event in sixth place while Kansas, Kansas State and Oklahoma closed the bottom portion of the standings.

The Lady Raiders will wait until Thursday morning to hear their postseason fate as the NCAA Selection Show is slated to air at 10 a.m. CT on the Golf Channel. Tech will be looking to make its seventh NCAA Regional appearance over an eight-year stretch.

If selected, the Lady Raiders will be the host school at the NCAA Lubbock Regional which will be held at The Rawls Course on May 8-10. Tech will welcome 16 of the nation's elite teams plus six individually for the three-day event.

"It's nice to know our next home tournament is at our home course," Robertson said. "We will have some tough competition here. It's finally here, and I'm excited about it. I know the team is, too, to play in front of friends and family."

??: Congrats to Sofia Garcia, who earned All-Big 12 honors after finishing in a tie for 7th overall. #WreckEm pic.twitter.com/67ZbQ7oazz
— Texas Tech W Golf (@TexasTechWGolf) April 23, 2017