Second-place Finish Secures NESCAC Championship Spot for Women’s Golf

Alex Noga '23 -

Hosting the NESCAC Fall Qualifier at the Cold Spring Country Club this weekend, the No. 9 women’s golf team finished in second place out of eight teams to earn a spot in the NESCAC Championship in April 2023. The Mammoths’ two-day score of 608 was just five strokes behind Williams — the tournament champions who will host the NESCAC Championship in the spring — but 15 strokes ahead of third-place Middlebury and 30 strokes ahead of fourth-place Hamilton, the other two teams that will join the Mammoths and Ephs in April. Jessica Huang ’25, the defending NESCAC individual champion, finished first out of all 40 golfers with a score of 147 over the two days, notching her first individual win of the season.

On day one of the tournament, the Mammoths shot a collective score of 312. Huang paced the Mammoths from the start, posting a score of 74 on the first day, which was the best round out of all the golfers in the field. Priya Bakshi ’24 was not far behind, scoring a 76 for the Mammoths. Kaia Wu ’26 and Gihoe Seo ’25 each finished day one with a score of 81, and Jenny Hua ’24 finished with a score of 84. Though they trailed first-place Williams by five strokes, the Mammoths were four strokes ahead of third place and 12 strokes ahead of fourth after round one.

The Mammoths greatly improved their score on day 2, shaving off 16 total strokes for a final-day score of 296. Huang somehow improved on her stellar day one performance, finishing with a score of 73 to seal her individual win. Bakshi was the definition of consistency, shooting an identical score of 76 to match her day-one tally. Wu showed the greatest improvement over the two days, bettering her day-one score by nine strokes for a score of 72 on day two, the best round of her rookie season. Bakshi finished with a two-day total of 152, tying her for fifth-place overall, and Wu finished seventh overall with a two-round total of 153. Seo cut six strokes off her day-one score, shooting a 75 on day two and finishing in tenth with a total of 156. Hua also showed improvement over the two days, shooting a 77 on the final day to card a total of 161. Williams matched the Mammoths’ day-two showing, however, and cemented their five-stroke victory.

The Mammoths will compete in their final tournament of the fall season this coming weekend at the New England Intercollegiate Golf Association Championship in Brewster, Massachusetts. Round one is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15, and the tournament will continue on Sunday, Oct. 16.