Donche-Gay, Vargas Lead K-State to Good Start
Feb 06, 2023 | Women's Golf
BOCA RATON, Fla. - The Kansas State women's golf team, behind standout performances from Manon Donche-Gay and Haley Vargas, is in sixth place following two rounds on Monday at the FAU Paradise Invitational, held on the par-72, 6,204-yard Osprey Point Golf Course.
The Wildcats put themselves in solid standing after a 5-over par 293 opening round, before climbing the leaderboard with a 3-under par 285 second round. Their total score now sits at 2-over par 578, one stroke away from BYU for a spot in the top-five.
The second round score was the lowest of the season for K-State.
"I'm proud of the ladies," said head coach Kristi Knight. "We started out slow but hung in there and played their way from 14th to sixth. Let's keep climbing!"
Donche-Gay, who's in a tie for 13th place at 2-under par 142, paced the Cats on the leaderboard. The senior carded a 2-under par 70 second round, her lowest of the season, after getting things started with an even-par 72 first round.
Donche-Gay becomes the first Wildcat to record multi even or under-par rounds this season. It's also the first time she's accomplished this feat thanks to her career low 36-hole score. Donche-Gay will be in pursuit of her second career top-20 finish in Tuesday's final round.
It was a blazing start to the day for Vargas, the Wildcats' other senior, as she shot a 2-under par 70 first round. The momentum continued in the front nine of the second round as she collected four birdies and reached the top-five before slipping a bit and finishing the round at 2-over par 74.
Vargas' day-one tally is an even-par 144, good for a tie in 19th place and in position for her third career top-20 finish.
The Cats team score improved in the afternoon due in part to the strong second rounds from Napua Glossner and Kate Tilma.
Glossner shot a 5-over par 77 first round, but rose 17 spots on the leaderboard with a 1-under par 71 second round. The junior is now tied for 40th place at 4-over par 148.
Kate Tilma, a freshman who is making her first career appearance in the scoring lineup, had a staggering 12-stroke improvement with a 2-under par 70 second round following a 10-over par 82 opening round. The Wichita, Kansas native moved up 11 spots and is tied for 63rd place at 8-over par 152.
Just ahead of her in the standings is Remington Isaac, who's tied for 59th place at 7-over par 151. Isaac registered a 2-over par 74 first round and a 5-over par 77 second round.
Noa Van Beek, who is competing this week as a individual, put together a great perfromance in just her third career appearance. The freshman carded back-to-back 1-over par 73 rounds and is in 29th place at 2-over par 146. A top-30 finish would be a career best.
Leading the event with a 12-stroke advantage is No. 19 Vanderbilt at 22-under par 554. Letizia Bagnoli from host-school Florida Atlantic is atop the individual leaderboard at 12-under par 132 following consecutive 6-under par 66 rounds.
When play resumes in sunny Boca Raton at 7 a.m. (CT) on Tuesday, K-State will be searching for its first top-five finish since September 2021. The final round will begin with a shotgun start.
Fans can follow live scoring on Golfstat.com.
The Wildcats put themselves in solid standing after a 5-over par 293 opening round, before climbing the leaderboard with a 3-under par 285 second round. Their total score now sits at 2-over par 578, one stroke away from BYU for a spot in the top-five.
The second round score was the lowest of the season for K-State.
"I'm proud of the ladies," said head coach Kristi Knight. "We started out slow but hung in there and played their way from 14th to sixth. Let's keep climbing!"
Donche-Gay, who's in a tie for 13th place at 2-under par 142, paced the Cats on the leaderboard. The senior carded a 2-under par 70 second round, her lowest of the season, after getting things started with an even-par 72 first round.
Donche-Gay becomes the first Wildcat to record multi even or under-par rounds this season. It's also the first time she's accomplished this feat thanks to her career low 36-hole score. Donche-Gay will be in pursuit of her second career top-20 finish in Tuesday's final round.
It was a blazing start to the day for Vargas, the Wildcats' other senior, as she shot a 2-under par 70 first round. The momentum continued in the front nine of the second round as she collected four birdies and reached the top-five before slipping a bit and finishing the round at 2-over par 74.
Vargas' day-one tally is an even-par 144, good for a tie in 19th place and in position for her third career top-20 finish.
The Cats team score improved in the afternoon due in part to the strong second rounds from Napua Glossner and Kate Tilma.
Glossner shot a 5-over par 77 first round, but rose 17 spots on the leaderboard with a 1-under par 71 second round. The junior is now tied for 40th place at 4-over par 148.
Kate Tilma, a freshman who is making her first career appearance in the scoring lineup, had a staggering 12-stroke improvement with a 2-under par 70 second round following a 10-over par 82 opening round. The Wichita, Kansas native moved up 11 spots and is tied for 63rd place at 8-over par 152.
Just ahead of her in the standings is Remington Isaac, who's tied for 59th place at 7-over par 151. Isaac registered a 2-over par 74 first round and a 5-over par 77 second round.
Noa Van Beek, who is competing this week as a individual, put together a great perfromance in just her third career appearance. The freshman carded back-to-back 1-over par 73 rounds and is in 29th place at 2-over par 146. A top-30 finish would be a career best.
Leading the event with a 12-stroke advantage is No. 19 Vanderbilt at 22-under par 554. Letizia Bagnoli from host-school Florida Atlantic is atop the individual leaderboard at 12-under par 132 following consecutive 6-under par 66 rounds.
When play resumes in sunny Boca Raton at 7 a.m. (CT) on Tuesday, K-State will be searching for its first top-five finish since September 2021. The final round will begin with a shotgun start.
Fans can follow live scoring on Golfstat.com.
Players Mentioned
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