PALM BEACH GARDENS, Fla.— The Fire women’s golf team had the fourth-best round of any team at the NAIA National Championship today as they combined for a score of 312 (+24).
Ana Uribe led the charge for the Fire by recording birdies on two of the first three holes she played. After ending the first nine holes with five pars, the freshman from Bogota, Colombia headed into the turn even with par.
Teammate Sarah Noto also birdied a pair of holes on the front nine, while making six pars en route to being one-under par halfway through the course. At this point, Noto, who ended the round tied for ninth overall with a 75 (+3), held sole possession of the lead.
Southeastern, who had four players shoot 80 or better, is just three strokes away from second place. Fellow Sun Conference member SCAD currently holds the lead with a phenomenal 300 (+12).
A challenging back nine, as well as rainy and windy conditions, saw scores increase slightly as the day went on, but Southeastern remained steady through all 18 holes.
Valentina Espinosa shot a team-best 39 (+3) on the last nine holes, while Lindsey Gonzalez impressively chipped in from a bunker on 18 to end her back nine with a 40 (+4).
Uribe finished the round with a 77 (+5) and is tied for 17th place overall.
If the Fire can replicate this performance at PGA National tomorrow morning, they will likely make the cut and be in contention for a national championship heading into the final round.
Southeastern is scheduled to tee off for the second round at 8 a.m. tomorrow. Be sure to keep up with live scoring at www.golfstat.com and follow SEUFireGolf on Twitter for updates.