Florida fifth in Lady Gators Invitational

The Florida Gators women’s golf team overcame tough conditions for the second straight day Tuesday to finish fifth in the 37th SunTrust Lady Gator Invitational, shooting a final-round 321 for a three-round total of 927, 14 shots behind champion Auburn, which beat Duke in a playoff.

“I think the team learned a valuable lesson about playing in harsh conditions,” Florida head coach Jill Briles-Hinton said. “Today they experienced unusually very hard wind. I know that the girls are all disappointed and they feel like they let each other down. But that shows that they really care about this team, which is positive. I think that sometimes a team will take two steps forward and have to take one step back to get better. And that’s what we will do.”

Sophomore Jessica Yadloczky of Casselberry finished tied for fourth with four others in the individual competition, shooting a final round of 6-over-par 76 for a three-day total of 226. Yadloczky and Co. were four strokes behind the individual champion, Duke’s Amanda Blumenhurst, who finished with a 77—222.

Freshman Andrea Watts of Bradenton closed with an 80 for a 228 total that left her tied for 11th place. Fellow freshman Evan Jensen of Belleair finished tied for 13th after shooting a final round of 79 for a 230 total. Redshirt sophomore Nicole Schachner of Libertyville, Ill., tied for 61st after shooting 86—243. Freshman Marika Lendl of Bradenton finished 78th with 87—254. Redshirt freshman Lauren Uzelatz of Lakeland finished tied for 19th as an individual, shooting a final-round 77 for 231.

“The squad will definitely have extra motivation going into the SEC Championships,” Briles-Hinton said. Next up for the Gators is the SEC Championships in Columbia, S.C., April 17-19.

SUNTRUST LADY GATOR INVITATIONAL

GAINESVILLE – Results after Tuesday’s final round of the 37th SunTrust Lady Gator Invitational, hosted by the University of Florida women’s golf team at the par-70, 5,954-yard Mark Bostick Golf Course:

Team scores: T1. Duke 913 (298-305-310) and Auburn 913 (306-305-302); 3. Georgia State 914 (307-305-302); 4. Alabama 918 (302-301-315); 5. Florida 927 (304-302-321); 6. Washington 932 (309-312-311); 7. Northwestern 934 (304-311-319); 8. Coastal Carolina 937 (309-319-308); 9. Florida International 941 (313-311-317); 10. Furman 942 (307-316-319); 11. Florida State 948 (320-299-329); 12. South Florida 951 (307-316-328); 13. Campbell 953 (306-324-323); 14. Brigham Young 960 (313-322-325); 15. Florida Atlantic 977 (324-326-327); 16. Georgetown 980 (314-332-334).

Individual scores: 1. Amanda Blumenherst (Duke) 222 (70-75-77); T2. Molly Aronsson (Washington) 224 (74-72-78) and Charlotte Lorentzen (Georgia State) 224 (76-74-74); T4. Cydney Clanton (Auburn) 226 (77-75-74), Paul Hurtado (Florida International) 226 (73-75-78), Anna Scott (Georgia State) 226 (73-76-77), Alison Whitaker (Duke) 226 (74-74-78) and Jessica Yadloczky (Florida) 226 (75-75-76); T9. Kathleen Ekey (Alabama) 227 (73-71-83) and Candace Schepperie (Auburn) 227 (73-79-75); T11. Camilia Lennarth (Alabama) 228 (78-72-78) and Andrea Watts (Florida) 228 (74-74-80); T13. Belen Buendia (Florida International) 230 (74-78-78), Evan Jensen (Florida) 230 (79-72-79), Stefanie Kenoyer (Furman) 230 (76-76-78), Cathrine Madsen (Georgia State) 230 (80-76-74), Macarena Silva (Florida State) 230 (79-75-76) and Haley Wilson (Auburn) 230 (77-77-76).

Florida scores: T4. Jessica Yadloczky 226 (75-75-76); T11. Andrea Watts 228 (74-74-80); T13. Evan Jensen 230 (79-72-79); T61. Nicole Schachner 243 (76-81-86); 78. Marika Lendl 254 (81-86-87); T19. Lauren Uzelatz (individual) 231 (73-81-77).