KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Ana Gonzalez finished third to lead the UTSA women's golf team to 11th place on Tuesday at the Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship at Cherokee Country Club (par 71/5,900 yards).
Gonzalez entered the final round in sole possession of third place at 4-under par and she fired a 3-under 68 to maintain her hold on the bronze medal. She finished at 7-under 206, just one shot behind the co-leaders Karoline Stormo and Pimnipa Panthong of Kent State.
Meanwhile, the Roadrunners carded a 292 in the final round, their best score of the week, and placed 11th with an 888. UTSA ended up one shot behind Middle Tennessee and two back of Tulane while also finishing 12 strokes in front of South Dakota State in the 16-team field won by Kent State (830).
Gonzalez turned in her second straight sub-70 scorecard with a 68 that featured seven birdies. Starting on the ninth hole in the final round, the junior birdied her first three and five of her first eight holes en route to her ninth career sub-70 round, five of which have come at Cherokee Country Club. The Monterrey, Mexico, native wrote down 15 birdies during the 54-hole event, which was tied for most in the field.
The reigning Conference USA individual champion's 54-hole score of 206 (71-67-68) is one shot shy of her school record 205 registered at this same tournament two years ago when she finished second. Gonzalez also posted a top-10 finish at last year's Mercedes-Benz Collegiate Championship, tying for eighth place with a 217 (68-78-71).
Camryn Carreon posted a season-best 74 that was highlighted by four birdies and the freshman from San Antonio finished in a tie for 49th place with a 226 (75-77-74).
Nicole Polivchak closed out a 230 with her second 76 in as many days and the junior transfer tied for 63rd place.
Hannah Holzmann and Katia Mexsen rounded out the UTSA lineup in 67th (73-85-74—232) and 85th (75-80-85—240), respectively.
The Roadrunners will return to the course on Oct. 4-6 when they travel to Virginia Beach for the Princess Anne Invitational.
