RANCHO MIRAGE, CALIFORNIA (UNLVRebels.com) -  The 2019 Mountain West Women's Golf Championships continued Tuesday with round two at Mission Hills Golf Club in Rancho Mirage, Calfiornia, where the UNLV women's golf team cut its round-one score in half on the event's second 18 holes to remain in fourth place. The 11-over (299) on day two moved the Rebels to 33-over (609) for the tournament as they still sit 11 shots back from a new leader, San Diego State, who overtook San Jose State atop the leaderboard with the best team round of the day at 7-over 295.

Sophomore Polly Mack, who finished round one in a tie for fifth, turned in another 2-over 74 Tuesday to give her a 4-over (148) score after 36 holes and move her alone into the fifth-place spot. In all, four of five Rebels sit in the top 20 on the leaderboard. Mack's classmate Cathy Liu began the day in a tie for fifth with Mack and shot a 6-over 78 to sit in a tie for 12th, while senior Shannon Oh carded a 2-over 74 Tuesday to jump up to a tie for 17th at 11-over. Fellow senior Elizabeth Prior had the largest improvement on day two, shooting a 1-over 73 to go from a tie for 37th to a tie for 19th at 12-over. Freshman Veronica Joels will enter the final round in a tie for 29th at 16-over.

The Spartans saw their five-shot lead disappear by the end of round two as SJSU carded a 19-over to fall to second place at 31-over (607). SDSU went in the opposite direction with its 7-over Tuesday to take control of the event with a nine-stroke lead with 18 holes left to play. UNR is in third just one shot behind the Spartans at 32-over (608), while the Rebels sit just one back of the Wolf Pack in fourth. Fresno State rounds out the top five at 37-over (613).

Day one leader, Fresno State's Brigitte Thibault, stayed consistent on day two, besting her first-round score of 71 by one stroke to extend her lead to four shots over the rest of the field at 3-under (141). SDSU's Fernanda Escauriza moved into the second place at 1-over (145) for the tournament, followed by SJSU's Natasha Andrea Oon in third at 2-over (146). Aztec Sarah Kjellker turned in the only individual round under 70 over the first two days of the event to jump 13 spots to fourth place at 3-over (147), while Mack is one shot back of Kjellker at 4-over.

REBEL OF THE DAY: Prior rebounded from an uncharacteristic first round Monday, shooting the best individual round of the day for the Rebels - a 1-over 73 - that saw four birdies, three bogeys and a double bogey.

NEXT UP FOR THE REBELS: The final round will get underway Wednesday morning at 7 a.m. with UNLV's tee times as follows: 7:45 a.m. Veronica Joels; 7:54 a.m. Elizabeth Prior; 8:03 a.m. Shannon Oh; 8:12 a.m. Cathy Liu; 8:21 a.m. Polly Mack.

REBEL SCORES:

• 4th - UNLV – (310-299 -- 609, +33)
• 5th– Polly Mack, sophomore (74-74 -- 148 , +4)
• T12th – Cathy Liu, sophomore (74-78 -- 152, +8)
• T17th – Shannon Oh, senior (81-74 -- 155 , +11)
• T19th  – Elizabeth Prior, senior (83-73 -- 156, +12)
• T29th – Veronica Joels, freshman (81-79 -- 160, +16)

TOP FIVE TEAMS 
1. San Diego State (303-295 -- 598, +22)
2. San Jose State (299-308 -- 607, +31)
 
3. UNR (305-303 -- 608, +32)
4. UNLV (310-299 -- 609, +33)
5. Fresno State (313-300 -- 613, +37)

REBEL NOTES: 

• UNLV finished in the top-10 in all five of six and in the top six in four of six regular season tournaments this spring, including a first-place finish at the Battle at Boulder Creek and a second place finish at Rebel Beach
• Polly Mack earned her first outright victory at the Mountain View Invitational this spring with a career-low 54-hole score of 10-under. She was named Mountain West Women's Golfer of the Week for the second time this spring after her victory
• The Rebels finished second at their second annual Rebel Beach Invitational at Spanish Trail Country Club in February, which is co-hosted by Long Beach State. Prior blew out the field with a seven-shot victory for her second straight tournament win
• The Rebels opened the spring with a team win at the Battle of Boulder Creek, with Prior and Mack tying for medalist honors
• Prior and Mack were named Co-Mountain West Women's Golfers of the Week after their win at Boulder Creek, then Prior earned it a second consecutive week after her win at Rebel Beach
• Last spring, the Rebels won its third straight MW championship, marking three consecutive MW titles for the first time since they won three in a row from 2004-06
• UNLV has won four conference championships in seven years under head coach Amy Bush-Herzer