After round two of the NCAA Championships in Sugar Grove, Illinois, the Gators women’s golf team sits in 12th place, up four spots from the first round.
Florida managed to climb back to within striking distance after posting a second round score that was 18 strokes better than their first round of play.
Senior Maria Torres found her swing again and led the way for the Gators, draining three birdies on the day and finishing at 1-over to bring her tournament score to 10-over.
Sophomore Sam Wagner and junior Taylor Tomlinson each contributed as well, finishing the round at 3-over for the day. Wagner’s second-round score was a marked improvement from opening day, shooting 17 strokes better than her 20-over round one.
Coach Emily Glaser said that Wagner’s play definitely stood out to her.
"I'm really proud of Sam and the resiliency she showed after Friday,” Glaser said. “We have asked a lot of her this week, coming in last minute, but we all knew she could rise to the occasion and she did today.”
As was the case on day one, the overall leader sits only at even par. Wake Forest’s Jennifer Kupcho shot 2-under during round two to bring down her stroke count, though she’s only competing as an individual as Wake Forest did not qualify for the tournament. August Kim of Purdue currently holds the low score among golfers on competing teams at 1-over.
The Gators as a whole played much better than they did in the first round. After combining for just three birdies on day one, UF made 10 birdies in round two to tie Furman for the third-lowest round of the day.
At the end of play on Monday, the top eight teams will advance to match play to determine the champion. Florida currently sits just three strokes behind eighth-place Miami, but must also contend with Purdue, Texas and Arizona State.
Glaser said that while it was a positive step in the right direction, she believes her team has a higher ceiling.
“It was great to improve and make a little bit of a move today,” Glaser said. “I think everyone had mixed feelings because we know we have more in us. The great news is we have another day to prove that.”
Monday’s tee times begin at 12:45 in the afternoon, and all Gators golfers will be on the course by 1:29.
Contact Morgan McMullen at mmcmullen@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @MorganMcMuffin.
Maria Torres watches her shot during the SunTrust Gator Invitational on March 11, 2017, at the Mark Bostick Golf Course in Gainesville.
