LITCHFIELD PARK, Ariz. – The Western Michigan golf team placed 13
th after three rounds on the Wigwam Resort Blue course at the Bell Bank "Pay it Forward" Collegiate, hosted by Minnesota.
Senior
Megha Vallabhaneni had the Broncos only round under par in the final day of the Bell Bank "Pay it Forward" Collegiate on Tuesday, March 24. Vallabhaneni ended her third round of the tournament carding a 70 to lead WMU. Overall, the senior placed 30
th out of 82 golfers with scores of 73-74-70 to end the tournament at 217 (+4). As a team, the Brown and Gold finished 13
th of 14
th with scores of 310-302-296 at 56 over par.
Sophomore
Lauren Lupinek was second on Western Michigan's team in the two-day tournament, carding scores of 78-73-74 (+12) for a total of 225. Senior
Jenna Hayes and freshman
Danielle Daniy tied for the Broncos third best score as both finished 21 over par after three rounds. Hayes scored rounds of 79-77-78 while Daniy carded rounds of 80-80-74. Junior
Macy Beeson rounded out WMU's team participants with rounds of 80-78-78 (+23).
Junior
Bella Brooks also competed for the Brown and Gold at the Bell Bank "Pay it Forward" Collegiate as an individual. Brooks ended the three-round tournament at 19 over par, having her best round at the end of the day on Monday. Brooks recorded rounds of 77-76-79 for a total of 232.
South Florida won the team title on Tuesday afternoon, finishing the tournament at 26 under par. The Bulls jumped to the top of the leaderboard after the first round with a team total of 272 (-12) and didn't move with rounds of 278 (-6) and 276 (-8). The top four teams at the Bell Bank "Pay it Forward" Collegiate all finished under par by at least 10 strokes. On the individual side, USF senior Regina Plascencia placed first, carding rounds of 66-70-68 for a total of 204 (-9).
Western Michigan returns to play in a little under two weeks at the Golfweek/Stifel Spring Challenge. The Broncos will head to Pawleys Island, S.C. to play at Caledonia Golf & Fish Club in the tournament with 18 other teams. The tournament will be held from April 6 to April 8.
