Sophomore Elaine Grant of UIS women's golf has qualified for the NCAA DII Women's Golf Championship after tying for third place at the East Regional this week. Grant carded rounds of 75, 77, 73 (225) to tie for third and finish as the top individual whose team did not qualify for nationals.
Grant is the second individual qualifier for UIS in two years. "I couldn't be more proud of Elaine this week." shared Head Coach Michael Leotta. "In the final round when she needed to be at her best, she was. She closed -2 on the final six holes. That type of execution in that situation was so impressive."
UIS finished 14th of 15 teams at the tournament, totaling 997 for 54 holes over three rounds. Indianapolis and Findlay went to a playoff for the East Regional title in which Findlay's Oilers coming away victorious. Both teams have qualified for the national championship, where they will be joined by Grand Valley State, Ashland, and Davenport. Missouri - St. Louis (UMSL), a GLVC foe of UIS, just missed qualifying when they landed in the sixth-place spot. UMSL's Wilma Zanderau is the second individual qualifier.
Elaine Grant recently claimed First Team All-GLVC honors with a third place finish at the GLVC Women's Golf Championship. It was her third top-10 finish this spring. Grant started regional action tied for 8th after one round, behind three athletes from bottom-10 teams. She moved to T7 after round two, then carded a 73 final round to finish 9-over par and clinch her first national championship berth. "I felt the most relaxed when I was coming down the stretch at the end but I was still focused on getting the job done," shared Grant. "After the last putt dropped, I was so excited about how I finished the tournament and how I get to go to nationals!"
Lillian Gottman had a strong finish to her freshman season, placing T33 at the East Regional with a 22-over 238.
Sara Prieto showed consistency, carding rounds of 85, 85, 83 (253) to finish T66 in the second East Regional appearance of her career.
Isabelle Segal shot a 54-hole 281 to take 78th at the tournament.
Results
| 14 | Illinois-Springfield | 338 | 336 | 323 | 997 |
| T3 | Elaine Grant (1) | 75 | 77 | 73 | 225 |
| T33 | Lillian Gottman (2) | 78 | 83 | 77 | 238 |
| T66 | Sara Prieto (3) | 85 | 85 | 83 | 253 |
| 78 | Isabelle Segal (4) | 100 | 91 | 90 | 281 |
Statistics
| Illinois-Springfield | Par 3s | Par 4s | Par 5s | Pars | Birdies |
| Elaine Grant (1) | 3.17 | 4.27 | 4.92 | 30 | 9 |
| Lillian Gottman (2) | 3.33 | 4.53 | 5.17 | 27 | 5 |
| Sara Prieto (3) | 3.42 | 4.83 | 5.58 | 28 | 0 |
| Isabel Segalle (4) | 3.67 | 5.53 | 5.92 | 16 | 3 |
NCAA DII Women's Golf Championship
The top three teams in the central region, top five teams in the east region, top five teams in the south region and the top five teams in the west region, along with the top two individuals not with a team have advanced to the championships for a total of 98 participants.
The following teams and individuals will participate in the championships:
Central Region Teams
1. Henderson State
2. Southwestern Oklahoma
3. Rogers State
Central Region Individuals
1. Ellen Spigner, Arkansas Tech
2. Mia Rallo, Central Missouri
East Region Teams
1. Findlay
2. UIndy
3. Grand Valley State
4. Ashland
5. Davenport
East Region Individuals
1. Elaine Grant, Illinois-Springfield
2. Wilma Zanderau, Missouri–St. Louis
South Region Teams
1. Anderson (South Carolina)
2. Lynn
3. Flagler
4. Lee
5. Nova Southeastern
South Region Individuals
1. Ana Maria Jimenez Rios, Tampa
2. Josefine Winkle, Lander
West Region Teams
1. West Texas A&M
2. Dallas Baptist University
3. Cal State East Bay
4. St. Mary's (Texas)
5. Cal State San Marcos
West Region Individuals
1. Maria Torres, Oklahoma Christian
2. Sofia Benavides, Oklahoma Christian