Sanjuan leads women's golf to 16th place finish

For the third consecutive tournament, IU women’s golf was led by a freshman.

Ana Sanjuan shot the best round in each of the three rounds during IU’s 16th-place finish in the Golfweek Conference Challenge.

The tournament was in Wolcott, Colo., and featured 18 teams from all across the country. Both coasts of America were represented in the 54-hole contest.

“We definitely saw an improvement out there, which comes with familiarity with the course and better weather,” IU Coach Clint Wallman said after round two. “We are still having trouble with the greens, but Ana played well and (sophomore) Maria (Mancini) really stepped up with her game.

“If we can make a few more putts, we will be in good shape tomorrow.”

Sanjuan was joined by senior Sophie Hayashi, Mancini and juniors Elizabeth Tong and Kamryn Klawitter, who represented the Hoosiers in the three-day excursion that started Monday and finished Wednesday.

Sanjuan, a native of Spain, improved every day, posting an 80, 77 and finishing with a 75.

Individually, she was tied for 28th out of 88 competitors.

Placing second among the Hoosiers was Tong. She posted an 82, 84 and improved to shoot 76 on the final day.

Pepperdine ran away with the tournament. The University from Malibu, Calif., won the tournament by 36 strokes. They finished +4 as a team.

In comparison, the Hoosiers finished +115 as a team.

IU will have a brief hiatus until its next tournament Oct. 19, when it travels to Indianapolis to play in the Hoosier Fall Invitational.

— Evan Hoopfer