Castle Surging Midway Through Gamecock Intercollegiate Finale

BLYTHEWOOD, S.C. – If Jensen Castle – playing some of her best golf of the season – had her way, she would have played into the night and finished the Gamecock Intercollegiate on Tuesday.
 
Originally slated for an 18-hole round, play continued through the middle of the final round of the Gamecock Intercollegiate on Tuesday to get as much golf in before inclement weather rolled into Blytheville, South Carolina, overnight.
 
That was about the only thing stopping one of Castle’s best all-around days of the 2020-21 season. The sophomore fired a 2-under-par 70 in the completed second round and was continuing to hover near the leaders with an even-par score in the final round before play was suspended due to weather and darkness.
 
With eight holes left in her tournament, Castle is tied for 12th place at 1-over par.
 
With Castle and freshman Laney Frye (2-over par, tied for 16th) leading the way, Kentucky is currently in 15th place at 26-over par. Most teams are halfway through the final round.
 
The 18-team event is arguably the most competitive field in all of college golf with five of the top seven teams in the Golfstat rankings competing at Columbia Country Club (par 72, 6,297 yards) this week. Duke is the only school in red numbers at 4-under par and Blue Devil Erica Shepherd sits atop the 96-player field at 8-under par.
 
Kentucky, even in 15th place, is just a handful of shots back of some of the best teams in the country. Only 14 shots separate UK from fifth place and the Wildcats are only six shots behind the top-ranked team in the country, Baylor.
 
“We were close to putting together a good round today,” Kentucky head coach Golda Borst said. “It was hard to see us give up several shots at the end of the second round and we will continue to work on finishing better. We just can’t make as many small mistakes as we are and expect to score.”
 
The final round is slated to resume with a shotgun start on Wednesday at 11:30 a.m., after the current rain system moves through. Players will pick up where they left off Tuesday evening.
 
Castle hopes to keep her momentum going after a sensational Tuesday. She carded a team-high six birdies in the second round to finish just one stroke off her 18-hole collegiate low.
 
Castle set the school’s single-season scoring average in 2019-20 but has finished no higher than 19th place this season. With two more birdies in the third round, she is currently at 1-over par for the tournament and tied for 12th.
 
Frye, a freshman, has been the most consistent overall player to this point in the year and has continued her strong play at the Gamecock Intercollegiate. She carded a 72 in the second round after doing so Monday for her team-leading seventh round of par or better this season.
 
At 2-over in the third round, Frye is also at 2-over par for the tournament and in a tie for 16th place. She has a team-high three top-20 finishes this season.
 
“It’s good to see Jensen and Laney stepping up for us and leading our team on the course,” Borst said. “They both played solid. I know Laney may be disappointed with her round due to her finish, but she’s a steady player for our team and I know the lower numbers will come in time.”
 
Senior Rikke Svejgård Nielsen posted a 3-over-par 75 in the second round after a 76 in the opening 18 holes. Currently 3-over par in the final round with nine holes to go, she is at 10-over par for the tournament and tied for 65th.
 
Sophomore María Villanueva Aperribay fought through her first significant adversity as a Wildcat with an 80 in the second round. She is tied for 76th at 13-over par overall.
 
Senior Sarah Shipley has opened her 2020-21 campaign with back-to-back 80s. At 5-over par in the final round, she is at 21-over par for the tournament.
 
Kentucky is playing its second straight event in the just over a week. UK finished in 10th place last week at the Florida Gators Invitational in Gainesville, Florida.
 
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.