SALISBURY, N.C. --- Tusculum University sophomore Reagan Padilla posted a 54-hole career low total 220 including a final round 72 to finish tied for third place at the 2024 South Atlantic Conference Women's Golf Championship.
The Pioneers closed out the tournament with a final day 313 to record a three-day score of 954 and finish ninth in the team competition.
Anderson University, the seventh-ranked team in NCAA Division II, claimed its third straight SAC title as the Trojans led wire-to-wire and posted a team total 879 for a 24-stroke victory over runner-up Limestone University, who carded the low score of the day with its 293.
Host Catawba, along with Wingate and Lincoln Memorial, all shot 906 and finished in a three-way tie for third place. Carson-Newman finished sixth with 919, followed by Lenoir-Rhyne (926), Newberry (930), Tusculum, Coker (969), Emory & Henry (999), Mars Hill (1043) and UVA Wise (1069).
Padilla's 220 is the second-lowest 54-hole school in school history and one shot off the record carded by Nilubol Panno at last year's SAC Championship. Her round included three birdies, four bogeys and 11 pars. Her third place finish is tied for the third-best showing at the SAC Championship by a Pioneer in the 25 years TU has been a member of the league. The only two finishes better are the individual titles won by Rachel McFarland (2003) and Shannon Palenkas (2007). The third place finish is the best by a TU player since Ciara Rattana's third-place showing in 2017.
Dilyara Bulambayeva of Lincoln Memorial captured the individual medal with her five-over par total 218, winning by one shot over runner-up Aly Francis of Anderson and two shots clear of Padilla and Limestone's Claudia Hastings. For her efforts, Padilla was named to the SAC All-Tournament Team.
TU freshman Anna Ahonen tied for 24th place with her tournament score of 80-76-76=232. Senior Adrienne O'Brien finished 46th with 80-85-84=249, sophomore Lindsay Self placed 48th with 90-82-81=253 and senior Emilie Bergh-Jacobsen shot 91-87-85=263 to tie for 54th.
Padilla also claimed her team-leading eighth top-5 performance of the season and ninth of her career which moves her into a tie for fifth all-time with former SAC Player of the Year Emee Herbert (2011-2013).
Padilla lowered her season stroke average to 74.32 which is a new program record, surpassing Katie Tomassoni's 2018-2019 average of 75.65.
