#26 Women’s Golf Surges into Lead at Jim West Challenge

SAN MARCOS, Texas – The University of Houston Women's Golf program used a strong surge in the afternoon to move into a tie for the team lead following the first 36 holes of the Jim West Challenge at Kissing Tree Golf Club on Sunday.

Ranked #26 in the National College Rankings from Scoreboard by Clippd, the Cougars posted a team score of 10-under 278 in Sunday's Second Round and joined TCU atop the team leaderboard at 14-under 562. All five Cougars in the starting lineup finished the first day among the Top-20- leaders and scored under par in the afternoon with four shooting 2-under or lower on the 6,123-yard, par-72 course.

Junior and two-time All-Conference star Moa Svedenskiold was tied for seventh at 4-under 140 to lead the Cougars. The Halmstad, Sweden, native opened the tournament with a 72 and drained seven birdies in the afternoon session.

Starting off No. 12 in the Second Round, Svedenskiold moved under par with a birdie at No. 14 but returned to even par with a bogey on the next hole. She returned to red numbers with back-to-back birdies on Nos. 17-18 and moved to 3-under in the round with a birdie on the par-4 first hole.

Following a bogey at No. 3, Svedenskiold drained birdies on three of the next five holes and was tied for seventh with four others.

Junior Natalie Saint Germain, sophomore Maelynn Kim and freshman Annika Ishiyama all were tied for 15^th at 2-under 144.

Saint Germain was consistent with 71s in each round while Kim opened the tournament with a 70 in the morning thanks to three birdies. The Katy, Texas, native started on a tough note and was 4-over through five holes but quickly returned close to bar with three straight birdies at Nos. 16-18.

Like Saint Germain, Ishiyama was steady with consecutive 71s and drained the Cougars' lone eagle of the day on the par-4 18^th hole to return to even par after a slow start in the First Round.

Junior Alexa Saldana was tied for 19^th at 1-under 143 and joined Svedenskiold with the team's low round with a 68 in the afternoon.

Starting off No. 10, the Mexico City native made two birdies on her first nine and overcame her lone bogey of the round at No. 4 by sinking three birdies during the next four holes.

Playing as an individual, senior Brooke Morales was tied for 56^th at +155.

Oklahoma stood in third at 565 while Ohio State and UNLV were tied for fourth at 571. Texas Tech (574), Texas State (575), New Mexico (580), North Texas (583) and UTSA (597) completed the Top 10 leaders.

Oklahoma's MaKayla Tyrrell stood atop the individual leaderboard at 8-under 136 while Oklahoma's Gracie Mayor and TCU's Kirstin Angosta were tied for second at 138. Maria Garcia (New Mexico), Reagan Chaney (Oklahoma) and Camille Min-Gaultier (TCU) were tied for fourth at 139.

TUNE IN
Fans can watch Monday's Final Round on ESPN+ with Brant Freeman and Victoria Heim calling the action by clicking here. Final-Round coverage begins at 8:30 a.m.

LIVE SCORING
Fans can follow live scoring at the Jim West Challenge on Scoreboard by Clippd by clicking here.

TEE TIMES
For Monday's Final Round, Houston will compete in groups with student-athletes from TCU and Oklahoma beginning at 8:30 a.m.

Svedenskiold begins the day for the Cougars in the first group off No. 1, with Ishiyama (second group off No. 1), Saint Germain (No. 2), Kim (No. 3) and Saldana (first group off No. 4) following. Morales opens play at No. 18.

Fans can find complete tee times and pairings on Scoreboard by clicking here.

JIM WEST CHALLENGE HISTORY
This marks the fourth straight season and sixth time in the last seven years in which the Cougars will compete at the Jim West Challenge. Houston did not compete in 2020-21 with the cancellation of the fall season due to the COVID pandemic.

Houston has earned third-place finishes in its last two appearances and three overall during their tournament history.

A year ago, the Cougars finished third with a score of 28-under 836 after posting three straight sub-par team scores. Kim enjoyed three straight rounds under par and tied for ninth with a score of 9-under 207 to lead the Cougars.

Svedenskiold, Nicole Abelar and Hyeonji Kang joined her among the Top-25 individual leaders.

UP NEXT
With the conclusion of the Jim West Challenge, the Cougars will close their Fall schedule.

Houston now will take its holiday break before opening the spring season at the Collegiate Individual at Guadalajara Country Club in Mexico on Jan. 30-Feb. 2, 2025.

From there, Houston plays host to their own Chevron Collegiate at Golf Club of Houston in Humble, Texas, on Feb. 24-25, 2025.

The spring slate continues as they Cougars tee off at the Riverbend Intercollegiate at Riverbend Country Club in Sugar Land, Texas, on March 10-11, 2025.

SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Women's Golf by supporting Linking Coogs – UH's NIL collective – and by joining the P.A.R. 4 Club, which provides financial support directly to Houston Women's Golf for needs beyond its operating budget.

STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarWGolf on X (formerly known as Twitter) and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at UHCougarWGolf or on the team's Instagram page at UHCougarWGolf.

– UHCougars.com –

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