KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 23 Tennessee women’s golf team secured a victory at home Tuesday at the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate at Cherokee Country Club.
The tournament win, which is the first of the Diana Cantu era, came after a stellar final round in which the Lady Vols shot 11-under, which was the lowest round-three score. UT shot 13-under overall and won the event by nine strokes over Oregon State.
Additionally, that was the Lady Vols’ first tournament victory since 2019.
Senior Manassanan Chotikabhukkana led the Big Orange after with a third-place showing after shooting 4-under through 54 holes. Chotikabhukkana was clutch in rounds two and three, carding a 67 and 70 to climb the leaderboard. The Thailand native now has 10 career finishes and two podium finishes.
The freshman duo of Madison Messimer and Thitikarn Thapasit is quickly shaping up to be a strong one. The true freshmen concluded the tournament tying for ninth place at 2-under overall. Messimer shot a 68 in round one and final round 71 to secure the top-10 placement. Thapasit came up big for the Big Orange in the final round with a 66.
Redshirt senior Lauren Nguyen, who was competing individually, impressed in her Lady Vol debut to also tie for ninth. Her lowest round took place on Monday when she notched a 68.
Junior Martina Lopez Lanchares tied for 22nd after bouncing back in the final round with a 69 that included an eagle on hole 15.
The final member of UT’s lineup, Sophie Christopher, placed 27th. The Germantown, Tennessee, native played a key part in the round-three team score after firing a final-round 68.
UP NEXT: Tennessee will head to Palo Alto, California, for the Stanford Intercollegiate, which runs from Oct. 17 to Oct. 19.
TEAM LEADERBOARD
1. Tennessee, -13
2. Oregon State, -4
T3. Chattanooga, +6
T3. Western Kentucky, +6
T3. Penn State, +6
6. TCU ,+7
7. Charlotte, +14
8. Mercer, +20
9. South Alabama, +23
10. Memphis, +27
11. FIU, +30
12. Middle Tennessee, +36
13. Campbell, +37
14. Jacksonville State, +39
15. East Tennessee State, +47
