SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — UTSA senior Camryn Carreon saw her historic season come to an end Sunday after the third round of the NCAA Championships at Grayhawk Golf Club (par 72/6,384 yards).
Making her second straight appearance at the national championships, Carreon closed her senior campaign with an even-par scorecard that was highlighted by a trio of birdies. The San Antonio native entered the third round in a tie for 77th at 4-over-par 148 after carding a pair of 74s over the first two days. Sunday's 72 closed out a 4-over 220, falling only two shots short of making the cut for Monday's final round.
Teeing off on No. 10, Carreon opened with back-to-back pars before settling for bogeys on Nos. 12-13. She wrote down par on each of the next four holes before closing the back side of the course with a birdie on the 495-yard, par-5 18th en route to a 1-over 37.
Carreon bounced back from a bogey on No. 1 with two consecutive pars before registering her second birdie of the day with a four on the 500-yard fourth. She reeled off two more pars and then got back to even for the round with a four on the 474-yard, par-5 seventh. She closed with a pair of pars, securing her best career score at the national championships and finishing the event with 37 pars to go with seven birdies.
"I feel honored to represent UTSA with another great season," Carreon said. "Making it to nationals for not only one, but two years in a row is something I never thought could happen."
Carreon's 220 was a five-stroke improvement over the 54-hole total recorded in her NCAA Championships debut last year when she posted a 73-78-74—225.
The three-time all-conference performer earned her spot in the national field after becoming the first Roadrunner to win an NCAA postseason tournament when she ran away with the San Antonio Regional crown on May 8-10. Carreon fired a 10-under 206 (71-67-68) on the TPC San Antonio Oaks Course to claim the title by six shots and advance to Scottsdale for the second year in a row.
"This season I was able to secure my first collegiate win in the beginning of the spring which I honestly never thought would happen," Carreon said. "It's just really hard to win in golf. But, then to bring home the trophy at regionals to secure my ticket to nationals again was just incredible."
Carreon, who intends to use her extra year of eligibility available from the COVID-19 pandemic spring sports waiver, ends the 2022-23 season with a 72.54 stroke average, which eclipsed the previous UTSA standard of 73.32 set by Ana Gonzalez in 2018-19. She recorded seven top-10 finishes, including a pair of victories to equal the school's single-season record held by Allie Jordan (2008-09), Julie Houston (2015-16) and Gonzalez (2018-19). She turned in a program-best 19 par-or-better scorecards — including eight sub-70 rounds — in 35 total rounds and now has shot par or lower 36 times as a Roadrunner.
"Having Coach Summer beside me in every shot this postseason has been so fun, and really does help me feel so confident out there," Carreon said. "We've truly created some memories that will last a lifetime. Looking back at this season, just makes me feel so grateful for my support system. My parents, family and friends of course, UTSA and everyone here that has helped me in my college career, my swing coach Bryan Gathright and especially coach MJ (Mary Janiga) and Coach Summer. I really couldn't do it without each and everyone of them."
Earlier this spring, Carreon smashed school records for low 18- and 54-hole scores en route to claiming her first collegiate win and the 18th in the 18-year history of the program at the Trinity Forest Invitational on March 6-7 in Dallas. After opening with a 7-under 137 (68-69), which matched the second-best 36-hole tally in program annals, she fired a 7-under 65 on the final day to eclipse the previous UTSA low-score standard of 66 held by Paola Valerio and Hunter Nugent. Her 14-under total beat the previous 54-hole mark of 9-under established by Fabiola Arriaga at the 2014 C-USA Championship and matched by Ana Gonzalez at the 2019 league event, and her 202 was a three-shot improvement from Gonzalez's 8-under 205 posted at the 2017 Mercedes Benz-Collegiate Championship.
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