Spartans Finish Third at NCAA Norman Regional, Advance to NCAA Championships
By Mike ‘Mex’ Carey of MSU with Roy J. Akers
East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State’s women’s golf team shot a 2-over par 290 in the third and final round of the NCAA Norman Regional on Tuesday at the Jimmie Austin Golf Club in Oklahoma to finish in third place and earn a trip to the NCAA Championships.
The regional was originally scheduled to be played over three days, but inclement weather forced the field to play 36 holes on Monday. The teams waited out weather this morning in the Norman area before hitting the course at 3 p.m. ET with the aim to play the full round.
The Spartans, who fired a 6-under par 282 in the second round, entered Tuesday’s final round in third place in the 12-team field. After dropping a couple of shots making the turn on the back nine on Tuesday, junior Taylor Kehoe posted back-to-back birdies as MSU moved back into third place and clinched a spot to its third-straight NCAA Championships appearance and fourth in the last five years.
MSU finished the 54-hole tournament at 1-under par 863 (291-282-290), the second-lowest 54-hole score in an NCAA Regional in program history.
Top-seeded Stanford won the regional, shooting a 23-under par 841 (276-284-281), with Northwestern second at 14-under par 850 and the Spartans in third place. Host Oklahoma was in fourth place and out on the course with several holes to play while Baylor was in fifth place at 3-over par 867. Five more teams were still out on the course with holes to play in order to determine the final advancing teams.
“This is another great accomplishment for this squad, but its’ also something they have expected of themselves,” Michigan State Head Coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll said. “Our Spartans are always driven and determined and making it to the National Championship today feels awesome. Once again, we continue to put Michigan State Golf on the map.”
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Stanford went into the day placing four golfers in the TOP 5. Northwestern’s Ashley Yun crashed the party to finish with a -7 and a 70 on the final day. She was joined by her teammate Lauryn Nguyen. The Spartans placed three in the Top 11, including a pair of seniors.
Kehoe led the way for the Spartans on Tuesday, firing a 3-under par 69 to finish in a tie for fifth place individually at 4-under par 212 (72-71-69). She posted five birdies in Tuesday’s final round, including three on the back nine to help secure the finish for MSU. Her round of 69 is tied for the fifth-lowest by a Spartan in an NCAA Regional and her 54-hole score of 212 is tied for the second-lowest in program history.
Kehoe was one of three Spartans to finish among the top-10 overall, joined by seniors Brooke Biermann and Katie Lu, who tied for 11th place with scores of even-par 72.
Biermann shot a 4-over par 76 in the final to round to finish at even-par 216 (73-67-76). Her second-round score of 5-under par 67 is tied for the second-lowest 18-hole score for an MSU player at an NCAA Regional. She finished tied for fifth in the field with 11 birdies.
Lu was steady throughout the tournament, finishing at even-par 216 with three-straight rounds of even-par 72. Lu, along with Kehoe, tied for second in the field with 40 pars.
Sophomore Ana Sofia Murcia tied for 38th place at 7-over par 223 (74-72-77) and junior Paula Balanzategui finished in 47th place at 9-over par 225 (77-75-73).
The top five teams (30 teams total) and the low individual not on an advancing team (six individuals total) from each regional site will advance to compete in the national championships to be played May 16-21 at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, California.
Michigan State NCAA Regional Notes
- Michigan State will be making its 17th all-time appearance at the NCAA Championships, including 15 trips under head coach Stacy Slobodnik-Stoll. MSU has advanced to the NCAA Championships four of the past five seasons.
- This will be the third-straight appearance in the NCAA Championships for the Spartans.
- MSU’s team score of 863 was the second-best 54-hole score in an NCAA Regional, just behind the team’s score of 860 in last year’s NCAA East Lansing Regional.
- The third-place finish at the NCAA Norman Regional tied for the second-best for the Spartans in an NCAA Regional (first at 2023 Palm Beach Regional; third place on four previous occasions in 2001, 2004, 2017 and 2024).
- This marked MSU’s 25th all-time appearance in an NCAA Regional.
- Taylor Kehoe shot a 4-under 212, tied for the second-lowest 54-hole score by a Spartan in an NCAA Regional. She ties the mark of 212 set by Sarah Burnham at the 2018 Austin Regional.
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