Kansas tied for sixth after first two rounds at the Trinity Forest Invitational
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DALLAS, Texas. – The Kansas women’s golf team began play for the final time this fall, at day one of the Trinity Forest Invitational at the Trinity Forest Golf Club. With two rounds and 36 holes of play at the par 72, 6,233 layout on Monday, the Jayhawks had a tough challenge to maintain a solid spot on the leaderboard with seven out of the 12-teams in the field ranked in the top-58 by Golfstat.
The steady play of seniors Ariadna Fonseca Diaz and Chomchana Phuchanbanchob anchored the team as KU finished finished tied for sixth with SMU after day one, shooting a two-round 599 (+23).
The Jayhawks emerged in a tie for fifth place after the opening round (295 +7), trailing seven strokes behind the leader, Tenneseee, before playing another 18 holes.
Fonseca Diaz led the Jayhawks in the first round as she used four birdies in the first round, firing a 1-under 71 which put her in a tie for second place going into round two. From there, she recorded a 76 in round two, placing her in a tie for 12th place going into tomorrow’s final round.
Phuchanbanchob was consistent throughout the day for the Jayhawks as she ended the day leading the team in scoring. She started the day on hole six, and carded three straight birdies on the back nine to put her at 2-over 74 going into the second round in a tie for 11th place. She continued in the second round by shooting even through seven holes, and finished with eight birdies on the day to finish in a tie for 5th place, shooting an even par 146 in the second round.
Pooratanaopa went even on the back nine and also shot a 74, putting her in a tie with Phuchanbanchob after round one. Pooratanaopa’s carded a pair of triple bogeys in the second round which stopped her from gaining momentum on day one, shooting an 80. She finished in a tie for 40th.
Junior Yi-Tsen Chou carded a pair of 76’s in both rounds and finished with a two-round 152 (+8), placing her in a tie for 35th place going into Tuesday’s final round of play. At the end of the second round, she recorded an eagle on No. 5 which helped her end her day on a high note.
Junior Annika Cedo struggled to find her rhythym, shooting a 13-over 85 in the second round. She sits in 66th place.
QUOTES
Head coach Erin O’Neil
On the talented field in the tournament:
“This is a great event for us to finish off our fall season and it’s the strongest field we have played so far. Trinity Forest is also a championship caliber course which tests all parts of your game, especially since it’s more of a links style course which we really don’t have much experience on. We’ve had to get comfortable quickly with some new shots around the green. Overall, it’s a tremendous opportunity for us to see how we stack up against other top teams and to push ourselves outside of our comfort zones on a challenging course.”
On the consistent play of seniors Ariadna Fonseca Diaz and Chomchana Phuchanbanchob:
“It’s very encouraging to see Ari and Cake (Chomchana) stepping up and leading the way for us. They both played very solid rounds today and are in a great position going into tomorrow.”
NOTABLES
- Yi-Tsen Chou’s eagle in the second round was the second of the season for the Jayhawks, the first previously coming from Pear Pooratanaopa at the Minnesota Invitational.
- For the third consecutive week, Ariadna Fonseca Diaz is in the top-15 heading into the final round.
- This is also fellow senior Chomchana Phuchanabanchob’s second week in a row sitting in the top-5 going into the final round.
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