K-State Selected as No. 7 Seed in NCAA Louisville Regional
Apr 29, 2026 | Women's Golf
MANHATTAN, Kan. – The Kansas State women's golf team was rewarded for its successful 2025-26 campaign by being selected for a second-straight postseason appearance on Wednesday, as the Wildcats are the No. 7 seed in the 2026 NCAA Louisville Regional, the NCAA Division I Women's Golf Selection Committee announced on Golf Channel.
K-State will compete at University of Louisville Golf Club, May 11-13, against a field of 12 teams, including No. 1 seed Arkansas, No. 2 seed Auburn, No. 3 seed and Big 12 Champion Iowa State, No. 4 seed Mississippi and No. 5 seed Houston. The top five finishers and low individual not on an advancing team at each of the six regional sites will move on to compete in the 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship, which will be held May 22-27 at Omni La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, California.
This is the second time in program history that the Wildcats have been selected for the postseason in consecutive years and the first since advancing every year from 2001 through 2004. It is also the second-straight season that K-State's regional site is in Kentucky after advancing out of the NCAA Lexington Regional a year ago.
"We're delighted to be headed back to the postseason and returning to the state of Kentucky for a second-straight regional," head coach Stew Burke said. "This is a great field with a number of elite teams, so we will need to be at our best to advance. Kentucky has been good to the Cats in the postseason, and we are looking forward to continuing that run!"
The other teams competing at the 2026 NCAA Louisville Regional are No. 6 seed Virginia Tech, No. 8 seed Indiana, No. 9 seed and CAA Champion College of Charleston, No. 10 seed and Big East Champion Xavier, No. 11 seed and Conference USA Champion Western Kentucky, and No. 12 seed and Missouri Valley Champion Murray State.
The Wildcats, ranked No. 40 in the latest National Collegiate Golf Rankings, hold a 289.50 team scoring average this season to rank second in program history, just behind the 288.13 mark last year's squad put together as it advanced to the NCAA Championship for the first time in program history. K-State also has four top-three and seven top-five finishes this season to tie for fourth place in school history in each category.
In addition, five of K-State's top-15 team rounds and four of its top-15 54-hole scores have come during the 2025-26 campaign.
Sophomores Kelsey Chen and Nanami Nakashima hold the Wildcats' top two scoring averages this season at 72.00 and 72.72, respectively. Chen, a transfer from Georgia Southern, enters the postseason with the third-lowest single-season average in program history, while Nakashima's mark ranks fourth.
A native of Dalian, China, Chen has finished in the top 10 in a team-leading five of her 11 starts this season, which includes a tie for first place in the spring-opening Puerto Rico Classic. She also paces the squad in under-par rounds (14) and percentage of rounds counted toward the team score (92.18%).
Nakashima, who hails from Kani, Japan, has 12 under-par rounds this season, including a team-leading nine rounds in the 60s. She also has a victory this season when she won the Powercat Invitational to close out the fall slate. Nakashima, who has competed in 70 rounds for the Wildcats over her two seasons of action, currently ranks second in program history with a 73.39 career scoring average.
The most veteran player on the roster is senior Noa van Beek, who ranks third on the team with a 73.00 scoring average and second with a pair of top-five finishes, which includes a victory in the Westbrook Invitational in February. During that event, the Oene, Netherlands, native recorded a school-record 54-hole score of 14-under par 202, which included a score of 8-under par 64 in the first round to rank second in program history.
van Beek enters the postseason ranked third in school history in career scoring average at 74.05 over 113 career rounds, and she will tie for 10th in school history in career tournaments played at 41 during the NCAA Louisville Regional.
Three freshmen have been part of the Wildcat scoring lineup throughout the season in Keen Visavapattamawan, Casey Kang and Stalee Fields. A native of Bangkok, Thailand, Visavapattamawan has seen time in all 11 events and holds a 74.03 scoring average with five top-20 finishes. Kang, who hails from Lanzhou, China, holds a 75.95 scoring average in seven starts, while Fields, a product of Fort Worth, Texas, is at 75.24 over six events.
K-State will compete at University of Louisville Golf Club, May 11-13, against a field of 12 teams, including No. 1 seed Arkansas, No. 2 seed Auburn, No. 3 seed and Big 12 Champion Iowa State, No. 4 seed Mississippi and No. 5 seed Houston. The top five finishers and low individual not on an advancing team at each of the six regional sites will move on to compete in the 2026 NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship, which will be held May 22-27 at Omni La Costa Resort in Carlsbad, California.
This is the second time in program history that the Wildcats have been selected for the postseason in consecutive years and the first since advancing every year from 2001 through 2004. It is also the second-straight season that K-State's regional site is in Kentucky after advancing out of the NCAA Lexington Regional a year ago.
"We're delighted to be headed back to the postseason and returning to the state of Kentucky for a second-straight regional," head coach Stew Burke said. "This is a great field with a number of elite teams, so we will need to be at our best to advance. Kentucky has been good to the Cats in the postseason, and we are looking forward to continuing that run!"
The other teams competing at the 2026 NCAA Louisville Regional are No. 6 seed Virginia Tech, No. 8 seed Indiana, No. 9 seed and CAA Champion College of Charleston, No. 10 seed and Big East Champion Xavier, No. 11 seed and Conference USA Champion Western Kentucky, and No. 12 seed and Missouri Valley Champion Murray State.
The Wildcats, ranked No. 40 in the latest National Collegiate Golf Rankings, hold a 289.50 team scoring average this season to rank second in program history, just behind the 288.13 mark last year's squad put together as it advanced to the NCAA Championship for the first time in program history. K-State also has four top-three and seven top-five finishes this season to tie for fourth place in school history in each category.
In addition, five of K-State's top-15 team rounds and four of its top-15 54-hole scores have come during the 2025-26 campaign.
Sophomores Kelsey Chen and Nanami Nakashima hold the Wildcats' top two scoring averages this season at 72.00 and 72.72, respectively. Chen, a transfer from Georgia Southern, enters the postseason with the third-lowest single-season average in program history, while Nakashima's mark ranks fourth.
A native of Dalian, China, Chen has finished in the top 10 in a team-leading five of her 11 starts this season, which includes a tie for first place in the spring-opening Puerto Rico Classic. She also paces the squad in under-par rounds (14) and percentage of rounds counted toward the team score (92.18%).
Nakashima, who hails from Kani, Japan, has 12 under-par rounds this season, including a team-leading nine rounds in the 60s. She also has a victory this season when she won the Powercat Invitational to close out the fall slate. Nakashima, who has competed in 70 rounds for the Wildcats over her two seasons of action, currently ranks second in program history with a 73.39 career scoring average.
The most veteran player on the roster is senior Noa van Beek, who ranks third on the team with a 73.00 scoring average and second with a pair of top-five finishes, which includes a victory in the Westbrook Invitational in February. During that event, the Oene, Netherlands, native recorded a school-record 54-hole score of 14-under par 202, which included a score of 8-under par 64 in the first round to rank second in program history.
van Beek enters the postseason ranked third in school history in career scoring average at 74.05 over 113 career rounds, and she will tie for 10th in school history in career tournaments played at 41 during the NCAA Louisville Regional.
Three freshmen have been part of the Wildcat scoring lineup throughout the season in Keen Visavapattamawan, Casey Kang and Stalee Fields. A native of Bangkok, Thailand, Visavapattamawan has seen time in all 11 events and holds a 74.03 scoring average with five top-20 finishes. Kang, who hails from Lanzhou, China, holds a 75.95 scoring average in seven starts, while Fields, a product of Fort Worth, Texas, is at 75.24 over six events.
– k-statesports.com –
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Women's Golf, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
How to follow the Cats: For complete information on K-State Women's Golf, visit www.kstatesports.com and follow the team's social media channels on X (formerly Twitter), Instagram and Facebook.
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