PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla.—It was a tale of two halves for women’s golf in the third round of the National Championship. Over a difficult first nine, SEU shot a less than impressive 173 (+29), but the Fire rebounded in a tremendous effort to shoot a combined 154 (+10) after the halfway point.
The Fire once again started their round on the back nine, where teams, including Southeastern, have typically struggled in the tournament.
Despite many high scores, Brooke Wetzel posted a noteworthy 37 while stringing together birdies on 17 and 18 to finish the first nine holes of play one over par. She continued her stretch with another birdie on No. 1, moving to a score even with par through ten holes. No other Fire player shot better than a 43 (+7) on those holes; however, as Southeastern made the turn, the tides shifted dramatically.
Ana Uribe played a fantastic final nine holes, making birdies on No. 2 and No. 6 and saving par on every other hole for a 34 (-2), which marks the lowest score by any Fire player over a nine-hole span in the tournament. She ended the day with a team-best 78 (+6) and is tied for 28th overall (+20) through 54 holes.
Junior Sarah Noto and freshman Valentina Espinosa both notched a 38 (+2) on the back nine, while Lindsey Gonzalez strung together four pars to shoot 39 (+3). Overall, Wetzel and Espinosa concluded their rounds with 81’s (+9) and Noto and Gonzalez added an 87 (+15) and 88 (+16), as Southeastern came out of day three in 14th place (+107).
The Fire will await their tee time for tomorrow’s final round of the NAIA National Championship. Be sure to follow @SEUFireGolf on Twitter for updates.