The No. 20 University of Arkansas women’s golfers kept it steady while falling back a couple of spots on Tuesday during the second round of the NCAA Ann Arbor (Mich.) Regional.
The Razorbacks, paced by Julia Gregg and Miriam Ayora, carded their second consecutive 7-over 291 on the par-71 University of Michigan Golf Course and are in third place with one round remaining.
No. 8 Virginia solved the scoring riddle on he 6,265-yard course Tuesday with a 3-under round to move into first place at 7 over for the 54-hole event. No. 5 San Jose State scored an even-par 284 to slip past the Razorbacks into second place at 10 over.
Arkansas, which entered the day with a two-shot lead over playing partners No. 18 Michigan and Washington, fared much better than the Wolverines and Huskies, who shot 16 over and 21 over, respectively.
The Razorbacks are in third at 14 over, followed by Michigan (25 over) and Washington (30 over), with Central Florida, Ohio State, Pepperdine and Virginia Tech six more shots back at 36 over. The top five teams from each of the six NCAA regionals qualify for the NCAA championships on May 20-25 in Scottsdale, Ariz.
Gregg, a junior, led the way for the Razorbacks with a 71 that featured four birdies and four bogeys, including one on the finishing 18th. She is tied for eighth at 3 over for the tournament.
Ayora, a sophomore, had an even-par round going, with two birdies and two bogeys, before also firing a 5 on the par-4 18th, rated the second-toughest hole at the regional. Ayora’s 72 left her at 4 over and tied for 13th.
Arkansas junior Ela Anacona, who started the day in a tie for the lead with Old Dominion’s Jana Melichova, fired a 2-over 73 to fall back to third place at even-par 142. San Jose State’s Natasha Andrea Oon shot 69 to take the lead by one shot over Virginia’s Jennifer Cleary, whose 67 on Tuesday marked the best round of the regional by two shots. Anacona, Cleary, Melichova and Oon are the only players to break 70 through two rounds.
Arkansas’ other counting score came from freshman Ffion Tynan in the leadoff position with a round of 4-over 75 that included three birdies and seven bogeys.
Arkansas junior Kajal Mistry had a rough day with two bogeys and a double bogey in her first four holes. She rebounded with a pair of birdies on the back nine, but carded three bogeys on the final four holes to close out a round of 77 to fall into a tie for 38th place at 9 over along with Tynan.
North Carolina is in 10th place at 37 over, behind the foursome tied at 36 over, followed by Xavier (41 over) and Oakland (60 over).
The Razorbacks lead the field in playing the difficult par 5s in 1-over par, followed by San Jose State (2 over), and host Michigan (4 over), with all other teams at 5 over or worse. Arkansas ranks third on the par 4s, playing those holes in 15 over and an average score of 4.14. The Razorbacks are fifth on the par 3s with an average score of 3.23 that has proved a 9-over score.