No. 12 Virginia women’s golf headed down to South Carolina for the Old Barnwell Derby Matchplay tournament Monday and Tuesday, an event composed of eight elite women’s golf programs. The Cavaliers entered the fray as the No. 4 seed based on current rankings, matching them up with No. 5 seed and No. 14-ranked Ole Miss. The seeding list was bookended by the host, No. 4 South Carolina, at the top and No. 22-ranked Duke at the bottom. The Cavaliers finished fourth after winning just one of their three matches.
In the tournament's opening round, the quarterfinals, Virginia bested Ole Miss 4-1. The Cavaliers nearly swept their opponent, losing the final match by a single hole. Sophomore Jaclyn LaHa, senior Megan Propeck, senior Amanda Sambach and graduate student Rebecca Skoler all won their matches, with LaHa and Sambach each winning by four holes.
The victory in the quarterfinals set the stage for Virginia to face off against the top-seeded Gamecocks in the next round. They fell to the home squad, losing 4-1, with LaHa being the lone Cavalier to beat her opponent, winning by one hole in a match that went the distance. The rest of the matches went to the hosts, who won each by at least two holes. This dominant performance knocked Virginia out of the champions bracket and into the third-place match.
In their final match of the tournament, the Cavaliers squared off against No. 6-ranked Florida State, losing 3-2. LaHa and Sambach managed to win their individual matches, both by two holes, but the rest of the squad could not keep pace with the No. 2 seed Seminoles. That capped off a very average performance from the Cavaliers, which finished in a respectable, but definitely improvable, fourth place.
LaHa was the clear bright spot, finishing 3-0. Even more impressive, she clinched victories over South Carolina senior Hanna Darling and Florida State junior Mirabel Ting, who are ranked 15th and third, respectively, in the World Amateur Golf Rankings. Sambach also contributed two wins in three matches, yet another solid performance from the anchor of the team.
LaHa found her success on par threes and par fives, finishing 17th and 11th in those categories, while also pouring in 12 birdies, tied for the fourth-most. Sambach dominated the par fives for the bulk of her scoring, finishing the tournament five-under par for those holes, tied for the third best in the field
Virginia will return to action March 28 for the Chattanooga Classic, a 54-hole tournament hosted by Tennessee.
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