After a tumultuous first round, senior Isabelle Lendl and sophomore Camilla Hedberg powered a resurgence that aided Florida to leapfrog five spots at the Tar Heel Invitational on Saturday.
The Gators carded a tournament-low 292 (+4) in round two, a nine-stroke improvement from Friday’s play at Finley Golf Course.
“Our team did a nice job of playing steady despite conditions that were more difficult than yesterday,” coach Emily Bastel said.
Florida is in sole possession of third place with a team score of 593 (+17), twelve strokes behind tournament leader and host North Carolina (581).
Isabelle Lendl, Florida’s first-round leader, followed her opening 70 (-2) with a 71 (-1) to drop into second place on the player leaderboards behind Baylor’s Hayley Davis. Lendl birdied three times to two bogeys on the day.
Davis (140) leads Lendl (141) by one stroke through two rounds of play.
Sophomore Camilla Hedberg answered her mediocre showing on Friday (75) with a team-high 70 (-2) on the second day. Hedberg birdied on holes 16 and 17, putting her in a tie for seventh place.
JUCO transfer Elcin Ulu made a significant improvement from Friday’s outing. Ulu carded a modest 75 (+3), a five-stroke improvement from the 80 (+8) carded in Round 1.
Sophomore Anna Young and freshman Ursa Orehek round out the remaining Gators with scores of 82 (+10) and 76 (+4), respectively. Orehek’s second-day 76 matched her scorecard from Friday.
Florida’s nine-stroke improvement has put them in a prime position to supplant Baylor (+15) and possibly North Carolina (+5) for yet another team victory.
“We are happy to have moved up the leaderboard and to be playing in the last group tomorrow,” Bastel said.
The Gators will resume play Sunday for the final round at the Tar Heel Invite.
