ORLANDO, Fla. – The Penn State women's golf team climbed the leaderboard to 12th in the 18-team field after totaling a 3-under, 285, in the second round of the UCF Challenge on Monday afternoon at Eagle Creek Golf Club.
Northwestern jumped into the top spot following an 18-under, 270, and are now at 34-under for the championship a full three shots clear of Wake Forest in second at 31-under. Mississippi State is third at 28-under while UCF and the College of Charleston round out the top-5 at 23-under and 19-under, respectively, through 36 holes.
Senior Sarah Willis (Eaton, Ohio) once again paced the Nittany Lions with her second-consecutive 70 (2-under) and is currently tied for 19th in the 96-player field at 4-under for the week. Willis came firing out of the gates with a bogey-free back nine, her first nine of the day, including three-straight birdies on 13-15 to go out in 3-under, 34.
Sophomore Michelle Cox (Allentown, Pa.) had a bounce back second round climbing 13 spots on the leaderboard and finishing seven shots better than a day ago with a 1-under, 71, as she tied Willis with a team-best four birdies on the day.
"I really struggled with the greens yesterday, so post round I putted with coach and today felt a lot better about putting, I was more confident, and it made a big difference," commented Cox. "I was really happy with the positions I put myself in all day to have good birdie looks."
Senior Isha Dhruva (Katy, Texas) and sophomore Drew Nienhaus (St. Louis, Mo.) stayed consistent and rounded out the four countable team scores each posting even-par rounds of 72. Nienhaus carded a bogey-free 1-under, 34, on the front nine, her second nine of the day to finish strong.
Senior Mathilde Delavallade (Royan, France) finished the day with a 3-over, 75, while classmate Taylor Waller (Canonsburg, Pa.), playing as an individual this week, fired a 1-over, 73. Waller is currently even-par for the week and tied for 39th.
"It was great to see the effort and consistency from everyone today," mentioned head coach Denise St. Pierre. "They had it going at one point today, but gave a few back coming in, overall I'm happy with how the team handled themselves and am looking forward to another great day tomorrow."
The Nittany Lions are back on the course tomorrow morning for the final round with an 8:45 a.m. shotgun start and will be paired with fellow Big Ten foe Michigan State along with UNC Wilmington.
Complete round two results available HERE.
