STANFORD, Calif. (UNLVRebels.com) - The UNLV women's golf team concluded its 2021-22 campaign on a strong note, carding its best team score of the week of a 5-over 289 during the final round of the NCAA Stanford Regional Wednesday. The Rebels finished the three-day event at Stanford Golf Course (Par 71 6,267 yards) in 11th at 46-over 898. Senior
Veronica Joels turned in a stellar final round of her career, carding a 3-under 68 to finish in a tie for 25th at 5-over 218.
USC entered the day with a four-shot lead and secured the regional title with an 8-shot win at 15-under, while host Stanford and LSU finished in a tie for second at 7-under. The fourth and final spot to advance to the NCAA Championships came down to a playoff between Northwestern and Purdue after each finished 54 holes at 12-over. Purdue won the playoff on the first hole to earn the coveted fourth spot. After Iowa State's Ruby Chou secured the first individual qualifying spot, the second one also came down to a playoff between the Cyvlones's Taglao Jeeravivitaporn and Northwestern's Jieni Li with Jeeravivitaporn advancing after winning on the second hole.
The NCAA Women's Golf Championship is being held May 20-25 at Grayhawk Golf Club (Raptor Course) in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Junior
Nicole Lorup was the next highest Rebel on the leaderboard, finishing in a tie for 47th at 14-over 227.
Hina Matsui had her best round of the event Wednesday, shooting at 1-over 72 to finish in 51st at 15-over 228. Freshman
Kendall Todd and
Toa Yokoyama each finished in a tie for 55th at 18-over 231.
It was a successful season for a young UNLV team that culminated with its first NCAA appearance since 2018. Despite having four newcomers in the lineup, including three freshmen, for the majority of the year, the Rebels won three team tournament titles (Dale McNamara Invitational, The Clash at Boulder Creek, The Show) and saw two individual medalists (
Sydney Bryan, Dale McNamara Invite;
Veronica Joels, The Clash at Boulder Creek) and back-to-back individual runner-up finishes (Kendall Tood, The Show and Westbrook Invite). During one stretch of the season, the Scarlet and Gray finished at par or better in five straight tournaments, setting a new program record, while the three team wins were the most since 2017-18.
Joels, a staple in the UNLV lineup over the last four-plus seasons, saved her best year for last. The Vegas native set career highs in scoring average, birdies and rounds at par or better and registered the best single round (5-under 67) and 54-hole score (5-under 211). She also won her first individual title at The Clash at Boulder Creek in October and her 108 career rounds ranks 12th all-time in program history.
