Wildcats Finish 13th in NCAA Athens Regional

Monday, May 8

Athens, Ga.

Kansas State University

NCAA Athens Regional

May 10, 2017 | Women's Golf

ATHENS, Georgia – The Kansas State women's golf team carded a 15-over par 303 on Wednesday to climb another spot on the leaderboard, finishing 13th in the 2017 NCAA Athens Regional at the par-72, 6,344-yard University of Georgia Golf Course.

K-State, which concluded the event at 46-over par 910, was led by senior Paige Nelson. The Farmers Branch, Texas, native was consistent throughout the week as she shot a 2-over par 74 on Wednesday after a pair of 73s in the first two rounds. She notched her third top-20 finish on the year, tying for 19th at 4-over par 220.

"I am proud of the team. It is tough when you get off to a rough start like we did," said head coach Kristi Knight. "I think it says a lot about our team that they did not give up. They kept battling and they wanted to do the best they could."

Senior Madison Talley carded a 12-over par 228 for the tournament to tie for 57th place. Fellow senior, Katherine Gravel-Coursol, and junior Connie Jaffrey both tied for 67th place at 15-over par 231. Sophomore Chloe Weir finished at 21-over par 237 to tie for 80th.

Alabama, the No. 1 seed in the regional, saw three players finish in the top five to take home the team title at 7-under par 857. The Crimson Tide topped second-place Northwestern by 14 strokes, while Michigan State finished one stroke behind at 8-over par 872. Baylor, Clemson and North Carolina rounded out the top six and head to the NCAA Championships.

Wake Forest's Jennifer Kupcho won the individual trophy at 10-under par 206, five strokes ahead of the Alabama duo of Cheyenne Knight and Lauren Stephenson.

Kansas State finished the year in an NCAA Regional for the fifth time in program history and first since 2004. The Wildcats finished with a team stroke average of 298.00 to record the third-best mark in school history.

2017 NCAA Athens Regional

University of Georgia Golf Course

Athens, Georgia

Par 72 / 6,344 Yards

Team Scores: 1. Alabama, 289-284-284—857 (-7); 2. Northwestern, 293-295-283—871 (+7); 3. Michigan State, 284-297-291—872 (+8); 4. Baylor, 296-282-299—877 (+13); 5. Clemson, 304-282-298—884 (+20); 6. North Carolina, 302-297-287—886 (+22); 7. Georgia, 293-299-297—889 (+25); 8. Tennessee, 297-291-302—890 (+26); 9. Augusta, 302-294-295—891 (+27); 10. Arizona, 298-297-299—894 (+30); 11. Princeton, 300-303-294—897 (+33); 12. Auburn, 305-298-297—900 (+36); 13. Kansas State, 310-297-303—910 (+46); 14. UCF, 304-299-310—913 (+49); 15. Wake Forest, 308-302-309—919 (+55); 16. North Florida, 305-313-302—920 (+56); 17. Troy, 315-298-310—923 (+59); 18. Quinnipiac, 333-316-329—978 (+114).

Top Individuals: 1. Jennifer Kupcho, Wake Forest, 68-70-68—206 (-10); T2. Lauren Stephenson, Alabama, 69-70-72—211 (-5); T2. Cheyenne Knight, Alabama, 71-71-69—211 (-5); 4. Laura Fuenfstueck, College of Charleston, 72-69-72—213 (-3).

K-State Individuals: T19. Paige Nelson, 73-73-74—220 (+4); T57. Madison Talley, 79-72-77—228 (+12); T67. Connie Jaffrey, 79-77-75—231 (+15); T67. Katherine Gravel-Coursol, 79-75-77—231 (+15); T80. Chloe Weir, 80-77-80—237 (+21).