Northwestern secured second place at NCAA Regionals, led by sophomore Ashley Yun’s stellar individual runner-up performance.
Following a fifth-place finish at the Big Ten Championships, the ’Cats traveled to Norman, Oklahoma for the NCAA Regionals. Northwestern competed in a 12-team field, with the top five teams advancing to the NCAA Championships. The No. 12 ’Cats were among the top contenders, along with No. 1 Stanford and No. 13 North Carolina. NU placed second overall, only behind Stanford, to secure its third consecutive NCAA Championship Finals appearance.
Northwestern opened strong on day one, shooting a team total of 1-under. Ashley Yun led the way with a stellar 3-under round that included five birdies, while Hsin-Tai Lin added an even-par score with four birdies of her own. The ’Cats ended the day in second place, inside the cutline but 11 shots back of the Cardinal.
Round two was even more impressive, as NU posted a remarkable 10-under team score. Four of five players finished under par, led by Tai Lin’s 5-under round, highlighted by five birdies and a hole-out eagle at the par-4 17th. Both Tai Lin and Yun, who shot 2-under with five birdies, were tied for the individual lead at 5-under. Dianna Lee (2-under) and Lauryn Nguyen (1-under) also contributed to the surge, bringing the team to 11-under — comfortably inside the cutline and just five shots off Stanford’s pace.
In the final round, Northwestern stumbled early, going 6-over through the first five holes. But the team rallied, with four players birdieing the par-3 6th and finishing the round at 3-under. Yun and Nguyen each carded 2-under rounds, and Elise Lee added her best score of the week at 1-under. The ’Cats clinched solo second to punch their ticket to the NCAA Championships.
Overall, the course proved challenging, playing nearly two strokes over par with an average score of 74.13. The final round was the toughest, with an average of 74.88. Only four holes played under par — the three par-5s and the short par-4 3rd, which averaged 0.12 under. The par-4 9th and 11th holes were the most difficult, each playing to a 4.30 average. Northwestern ranked second in scoring average on par-3s, par-4s and par-5s — trailing only top-ranked Stanford. The ‘Cats made their biggest impact on the par-5s, where they shot a combined 15-under. NU also led the field in eagles (2) and ranked second in birdies with 50.
Individually, Yun led the way, finishing at 7-under with rounds of 69, 70 and 70. The sophomore tied for second in par-3 scoring average (2.83) and ranked second on par-5s (4.50). Among a field featuring four top-15 players in the Clippd Golf rankings, the No. 40-ranked Yun stood out with a solo second-place finish.
Nguyen and Tai Lin also had strong performances. Nguyen posted rounds of 73, 71 and 70 to finish at 2-under and tied for eighth. She matched Yun’s par-3 scoring average, tying for second in the field. Tai Lin had a strong first two rounds of 72 and 67. She was in a tie for the lead after 36 holes. Although the first-year had a disappointing final round of 6-over, she still had a terrific tournament with a tie for a 14th place result.
Rounding out the lineup, Dianna Lee and Elise Lee both finished at 2-over par. Dianna Lee recorded rounds of 74, 70 and 74. She made eight birdies during the tournament and finished in a tie for 17th. Elise Lee posted scores of 73, 74 and 71. She ended her tournament on a high note, sinking an eagle on the final hole to also finish tied for 17th.
The ‘Cats will return to action at the NCAA Championships from May 16–21. This year’s tournament will take place at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California. Northwestern will look to carry its strong momentum into the final event of the season.