Women’s Golf Tied For 3rd after NCAA Auburn Regional First Round

AUBURN, Ala. – The University of Houston Women's Golf program posted a score of 298 to tie for third following the First Round of the NCAA Auburn Regional at Auburn University Club on Monday afternoon.

Competing on the 6,456-yard, hilly, par-72 course, sophomore and Big 12 Championships All-Tournament Team member Moa Svedenskiold sank a pair of birdies and was tied for fifth at 72.

Sophomore Alexa Saldana and freshman Maelynn Kim each shot 74 to join Svedenskiold among the Top-15 leaders through the first 18 holes.

Host and second-seeded Auburn held the first-day lead at 290 with No. 1 seed South Carolina in second at 293. The Cougars joined No. 3 Oregon and No. 8 Tulsa in the tie for third with No. 5 North Carolina (300), No. 9 Miami (Fla.) (305), No. 4 Georgia (306), No. 11 East Tennessee State (308) and No. 6 Michigan (11) rounding out the Top 10.

The Top-Five teams and top individual not on an advancing team advance to the NCAA Championships.

Starting off No. 1, Svedenskiold overcame a bogey at No. 4 and returned to even par with a birdie on the 538-yard, par-5 seventh hole. Despite her final bogey at No. 8, the Halmstad, Sweden, native played a bogey-free back nine and sank her final birdie of the day at the par-5 16^th hole to finish with a 72.

Saldana overcame a tough start which saw her with four bogeys through her first 12 holes. Fortunately, the Mexico City, native rallied and alternated birdies and pars over a five-hole stretch beginning at No. 13 and was tied for 13^th with a 74.

Competing in the first NCAA Regional of her collegiate career, Kim made par on 13 of her first 14 holes and made birdie on the par-3 17^th hole to join Saldana in the group at 74.

Senior Nicole Abelar was tied for 41^st at 78 while junior Hyeonji Kang – also competing in her first NCAA Regional – was tied for 49^th at 79.

The NCAA Auburn Regional continues with the Second Round on Tuesday and the Final Round teeing off Wednesday with 8 a.m., starts each day.

LIVE SCORING
Fans can follow live scoring at the NCAA Auburn Regional on Golfstat by clicking here.

TEE TIMES
For Tuesday's Second Round, Houston will compete in groups with student-athletes from Tulsa and North Carolina.

The Cougars will tee off No. 10 at 8 a.m., Monday with Kang starting and Abelar (8:11 a.m.), Kim (8:22 a.m.), Saldana (8:33 a.m.) and Svedenskiold (8:44 a.m.) following.

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

NCAA REGIONAL HISTORY
This is the eighth NCAA Regional appearance in the young history of Houston Women's Golf. It also marks the ninth straight season Houston will be represented in the NCAA postseason after Annie Kim competed as an individual at the 2022 NCAA Franklin Regional.

This marks the second straight year Houston has competed as a No, 7 seed at an NCAA Regional, tying with the 2017-18 team for the highest seeding in school history.

Abelar will compete in the third NCAA Regional of her career with the last two coming with the Cougars. Saldana and Svedenskiold will tee off in their second NCAA Regionals while Kang and Kim will make their NCAA debuts.

UP NEXT
The top five teams and top individual not on an advancing team at each NCAA Regional site advance to the NCAA Championships set for May 17-22 at Omni La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif.

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
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