UK WGolf Posts Season Best Second Straight Day at UCF Challenge
ORLANDO, Fla. – The Kentucky women’s golf team set a season-low score for a second day in a row with an even-par 288 on Monday in the UCF Challenge.
Fueled by a career day from sophomore María Villanueva Aperribay, the Wildcats cut a stroke off their Sunday round and moved up two spots on the leaderboard. On a day in which the wind consistently blew at 20 to 30 miles per hour, Kentucky held steady and was one of only four teams to shoot even par or better in the second round.
After 36 holes, UK is in seventh place in the 17-team field at the Eagle Creek Golf Club in Orlando, Florida. Kentucky is at 1-over par overall heading into Tuesday’s 18-hole conclusion and Villanueva Aperribay is in a tie for sixth place at 2-under par overall.
“Today’s conditions were brutal, and as a coach I am very proud of what I saw in our team: discipline, commitment and courage,” UK head coach Golda Borst said. “The last four holes played straight into the wind, a solid 30-yard headwind. They battled all the way through. Do we still need some putts to drop and learn how to control the ball better in these conditions? Yes, but we will get there, one day at a time.”
The final round will tee off Tuesday at 8 a.m. with the Wildcats slated to begin at 9:40 a.m. Live scoring will be available at GolfStat.com.
Houston moved into first place at 15-under par with a four-shot lead over Wake Forest.
Kentucky is likely too far back to challenge for the team title, but the Wildcats have their eyes on their best all-around tournament of the season so far. UK’s best 54-hole score of the fall was 21-over par and the best finish was eighth place. The Wildcats are in line to beat both of those marks if they can duplicate or improve upon the first two rounds in Orlando.
Villanueva Aperribay broke through with a career-low 69 in the second round. The transfer from Augusta was a major contributor at her previous school and the UK coaching staff expected her to come in and make an immediate impact, but Monday’s performance was highly encouraging for a team that already boasts a lot of depth.
The 3-under-par 69 not only set an 18-hole collegiate low for Villanueva Aperribay, it also tied sophomore Jensen Castle for the best round of the year by a Wildcat.
“María has been due for a low round and it’s great to see her put a whole round together, especially in these conditions,” Borst said. “Laney (Frye) bounced back strong today too and was more comfortable on the course.”
Villanueva Aperribay fired a 2-under-par 33 on the front nine with two birdies and no bogeys. She was 1-under par on the back with two birdies and just one bogey. Tied for sixth, a run at medalist honors is not out of the question in the final round, especially with more high winds in the forecast for Tuesday’s final round. Wake Forest’s Lauren Walsh and Houston’s Karen Fredgaard currently sit atop the 90-player leaderboard at 7-under par.
Sophomore Marissa Wenzler followed up her 1-under-par 71 in the first round with a 73 on Tuesday. She is looking for her best showing of the 2020-21 season as she’s currently tied for 17th at even par.
Castle sits at 2-over par for the tournament after a 74 in the second round. She was 1-under par heading into the final four holes of Monday’s round but bogeyed and double bogeyed two of those holes. She is tied for 31st.
Senior Rikke Svejgård Nielsen is in a tie for 45th at 4-over par. Despite some early-round adversity with a triple bogey on No. 3, she responded nicely with four birdies and carded a 75.
Frye enjoyed the second-best day for UK in the second round. After an uncharacteristic 78 in the first round, Frye came back Monday with an even-par 72. Kentucky’s top performer in the fall matched four bogeys with four birdies. Frye is tied for 61st.
UK entered the 2020-21 season with high expectations after a breakthrough campaign in 2019-20 that was ultimately cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic. Returning every key piece from last season’s team, the Wildcats were unable able to meet the high expectations they set for themselves in the fall against three difficult fields, but they have certainly looked the part in the first two rounds of the UCF Challenge.
This week’s event is one of five regular-season tournaments for UK over the next two months before postseason play.
The Wildcats last played in the UCF Challenge in February 2017, where former UK star Isabelle Johansson recorded one of the lowest 54-hole totals in school history, an 8-under-par 208. Kentucky was a frequent visitor in the UCF Challenge through the 2017 tournament. UK had appeared in the tournament Challenge six times in seven seasons from 2011 to 2017, finishing in the top five three times in that span.
For the latest on the Kentucky women’s golf team, follow the team on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram, as well as on the web at UKathletics.com.
