The University of the Fraser Valley women's golf team staged an impressive comeback under inclement conditions, rallying to win the UFV Spring Invitational presented by RMI Communications.
The Cascades had trailed by seven strokes after Saturday's opening round, sitting at +18 as a team with the UVic Vikes (+11) setting the early pace. But on Sunday, the hosts excelled while the Vikes faded, and in the end, UFV claimed a six-stroke victory.
FULL RESULTS
"It was a bit of a built-up process for us, over the last five weeks of knocking at the door," Cascades head coach
Cody Stewart enthused afterward. "Honestly, we were sick and tired of coming in second or third.Â
"The attitude this morning in the team was, 'Let's go out and get the W.' They went out, they got after it, and they earned it.Â
"This was maybe the first time where we saw, 'This is what our team can do.' We weren't just led by a couple of players. With a Sunday tournament set-up and rainy conditions, it was hard out here, and they played outstanding all the way through. That's a huge step for us with nationals coming up next."
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The Cascades got outstanding contributions from the entire roster, with four golfers finishing top-10 individually.
Coral Hamade eagled the 18th on Sunday to tie teammate
Emery Bardock for third at +9 for the tourney,
Lucy Park (+12) was sixth, and
Alex Brunner (+18) was 10th.
Avery Biggar (+28) finished 18th, and
Ella Gifford (+40) was 23rd.Â
UVic's Sukriti Harjai carded rounds of 70 and 74 to finish at even par for the weekend, giving her a dominant seven-stroke victory in the women's individual. Calgary's Victoria Tse (+7) was second.
UFV's team score of +30 gave them a six-stroke cushion ahead of the UBC Okanagan Heat (+36), while the Vikes (+40) slipped to third place and the Calgary Dinos (+60) rounded out the field in fourth.
Up next for the Cascades is the Golf Canada University/College Championships, June 1-4 in Bromont, Que.
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