Craig overcame a two-shot deficit to begin the day, thanks to her 2-under 70. She was 2-over through three holes on Sunday, after a double-bogey on No. 3. Birdies on No. 4 and No. 9 got her back to even at the turn, where she remained until a birdie on No. 15 – her fifth of the day – and another at No. 17.
The Lady Tops began the day tied with Rutgers atop the leaderboard. Despite struggling early in the round and slipping to fifth, WKU finished the day strong to post a runner-up finish at the University of Louisville Golf Club – besting the hosts Louisville (ACC), Rutgers (Big Ten) and Cincinnati (Big 12) among others in the 15-team field.
In addition to Craig's victory, junior Averi Cline earned her eighth career Top-20 finish (tied for 13th). Kaylee Dwyer, a freshman playing as an individual, fired an even-par 72 on Sunday to finished tied for 21st, matching Julia Zigrossi's finish.
NOTABLES
- Craig had six birdies on Sunday and finished with a tournament-best 13 among the 84-player field.
- Craig led the field in Par-4 scoring (3.93) and Par-5 scoring (4.67).
- Averi Cline tied for third in the field in Par-3 scoring (even) and was tied for second with 40 pars on the weekend.
- Kaylee Dwyer tied for second in the field in Par-5 scoring (4.75).
- WKU led the 15-team field in Par-4 scoring with a 4.13 scoring averaged. The Lady Tops were fifth in Par-3 scoring (3.25) and sixth in Par-5 scoring (5.08).
- The Lady Tops' 174 pars were the third most in the field while their 33 birdies were fourth.
QUOTABLE
"Going into today, I knew that I was playing in the same group as the leader, so I made sure I stayed present on each shot and accepted whatever outcome occurred! For me to end up winning my fifth collegiate title is truly a blessing and I am grateful for having such a wonderful team and coach to help and support me." – senior medalist Catie Craig
"I'm super proud of the way Catie battled today. She got off to a tough start, but continued to fight back the rest of the day. She played solid all week and it's nice to see hard work pay off. I was also proud of our team as a whole. Like Catie, the entire team battled throughout the day and while we wanted to win, we are proud to earn a runner-up finish against this deep field at the Cardinal Cup." – head coach Adam Gary
TEAM LEADERBOARD
1. Middle Tennessee | 294-297-289—880 (+16)
2. WESTERN KENTUCKY | 297-291-295—883 (+19)
3. East Carolina | 302-294-288—884 (+20)
T4. Louisville | 297-299-289—885 (+21)
T4. Rutgers | 291-297-297—885 (+21)
INDIVIDUAL LEADERBOARD
1. CATIE CRAIG, WKU | 70-73-70—213 (-3)
T2. Carmen Griffiths, Louisville | 71-74-70—215 (-1_
T2. Grace Lu, Rutgers | 69-72-74—215 (-1)
4. Tatum Walsh, James Madison | 72-73-71—216 €
T13. AVERI CLINE, WKU | 75-72-75—222 (+6)
T21. JULIA ZIGROSSI, WKU | 75-73-76—224 (+8)
T21. KAYLEE DWYER*, WKU | 77-75-72—224 (+8)
T32. SYDNEY HACKETT, WKU | 77-73-78—228 (+12)
T46. NINA McMURTREY, WKU | 81-77-74—232 (+16)
T53. REAGAN FOLK*, WKU | 81-77-76—234 (+18)
*playing as individual
NEXT UP
WKU is back in action next weekend for the Lady Paladin Invitational, hosted by Furman, in Greenville, S.C. The three-day, 54-hole event begins on Friday (Sept. 20) and concludes Sunday (Sept. 22).
