MELBOURNE, Fla. – A pair of two-under par 214s from Lucia Gonzalez and Puneet Bajwa helped the Old Dominion women's golf team finish third at the Columbia Classic.
Entering the day in second place at two-over par 578, the Monarchs turned in a final round of 299 on Monday to end up at 13 over with an 877. Yale finished atop the team standings with a seven-over 871 and Penn State came in second with a 10-over 874. PSU's Michelle Cox was the individual medalist at nine-under 207. In second place was Yale's Alexis Kim with a final score of 211 (-5), and JMU's Kendall Turner grabbed third with a tally of 213 (-3).
Gonzalez and Bajwa found themselves near the top of the leaderboard throughout the Classic and ended up tied for fourth. Gonzalez started off the tournament with her best round as a Monarch, a four-under par 68, to tie for first. The sophomore from Monterrey, Mexico then followed with a three-under 69 on Sunday and posted a 77 for her final trip around the course at Duran Golf Club. Bajwa, a freshman from Mohali, India, opened play with a three-under 69 to tie for third. She then shot an even 72 in the second round and a 73 in the third.
Carley Rudolf was next for ODU, tying for 18th with a 54-hole total of 223 (+7). Klara Wildhaber turned in an 11-over 227 to tie for 32nd, and Leiu Yuenyong fired a 17-over 233 to tie for 47th.
Gonzalez made 13 birdies over the three days, the second-most of the Classic, while Bajwa was the overall leader in made putts for par with 40. Bajwa also eagled the par-5 first hole on Monday.
"It was a great opportunity for our team to be in contention this week," said ODU Head Coach Mallory Kane. "Overall, we played a lot of good golf. It is important we take it one step at a time with this group. I am certain the next time we find ourselves in this position we will have an even better finish."
The team resumes its spring schedule at the Momentum Transportation UNF Collegiate on March 4-5 in Jacksonville, Florida. North Florida is hosting its tournament at Jacksonville Golf and Country Club.
Team Results
1. Yale (297-282-292 – 871) +7
2. Penn State (296-281-297 – 874) +10
3. Old Dominion (289-289-299 – 877) +13
4. Kennesaw State (293-295-302 – 890) +26
5. Dartmouth (293-304-301 – 898) +34
6. James Madison (301-293-305 – 899) +35
7. Columbia (302-299-299 – 900) +36
8. Richmond (300-299-302 – 901) +37
9. Cal State Fullerton (305-305-298 – 908) +44
10. Eastern Kentucky (300-303-313 – 916) +52
11. Youngstown State (301-306-314 – 921) +57
12. Seton Hall (303-310-309 – 922) +58
13. St. John's (307-302-317 – 926) +62
14. UAlbany (305-309-317 – 931) +67
15. Princeton (311-311-315 – 937) +73
16. Emory (319-312-312 – 943) +79
ODU Lineup
T4. Lucia Gonzalez (68-69-77 – 214) -2
T4. Puneet Bajwa (69-72-73 – 214) -2
T18. Carley Rudolf (76-72-75 – 223) +7
T32. Klara Wildhaber (77-76-74 – 227) +11
T47. Leiu Yuenyong (76-76-81 – 233) +17
Monarchs Place Third at Columbia Classic
