BOULDER CITY, Nev. – Entering the final day of The Clash at Boulder Creek in a top-10 position at Boulder Creek Golf Club, Grand Canyon jumped even higher after the third and final round Tuesday, tying for fifth with two Lopes finishing in the top 10.
GCU shot 14 over par in the first round to be 16th among 18 teams. The Lopes made a 180-degree turnaround, shooting 11 under in the second round to move into eighth with one round to play. That round came Tuesday, when GCU shot 4 over to finish at 7 over for the tournament and tie for fifth place with North Dakota State.
The Lopes’ 11-under second round was tied for the lowest single-round team score of the tournament, following up with the sixth-lowest team score in Tuesday’s final 18.
GCU freshman Alexis Vakasiuola continued momentum from her personal-best showing last week in Hawaii, carding a 3-under score to tie for sixth overall. Vakasiuola shot even Tuesday with five birdies, three of which came between holes 8-11. The San Tan Valley, Arizona, native tallied 12 birdies, tied for ninth most in the field, and shot 6 under on par-five holes.
Lopes junior Lena Tremouille wiped away a 5-over first round with an impressive turnaround over her final 36 holes. Tremouille shot 5 under in the second round and finished the tournament with a 1-under final 18, registering 14 pars, an eagle, one birdie and two bogeys. The France native was one of three players to have multiple eagles for the tournament, She shined on par-5 holes, tying Vakasiuola with a 6-under 4.5 scoring average, and tied for ninth in the player standings.
GCU sophomore Allie Justiz climbed nine spots into a tie for 38th, shooting 4 over in total. Justiz notched a 1-over final round with four birdies.
Lopes freshmen Rosie Maguire and Clara Duerr shot 10 over (tied for 65th) and 17 over (tied for 88th), respectively. The duo combined for five birdies.
Junior teammate Jess Haines shot 5 over as an individual entry to tie for 44th, while GCU freshman Honor Johnson tied for 58th at 8 over, carding a personal-best even score Tuesday with three birdies and an eagle.
The Lopes finished with six eagles, three more than the next team. Their 43 birdies tied for eighth most, finding most of them on par-5 holes in which they shot a combined 16 under, second best among the 18 teams.
GCU takes its winter break before resuming play Feb. 9 in Tucson at the Thunderbird Invitational.
