By Jess Westendorf
The Hawkeye women’s golf team tied with Santa Clara for sixth place at the Red Raider Invitational on Tuesday.
The Hawks opened the 2016-17 season at the invitational in Lubbock, Texas, at the Rawls Golf Course on Monday. The final score card for the Hawkeyes showed a 907 (43-over) with round scores of 300, 303, and 304.
Host Texas Tech came in second at 889, falling 9 strokes behind New Mexico State, which took first.
Hawkeye junior Jessica Ip stole the show Tuesday, shooting a third-round score of 70 (1-under). She concluded the tournament with a three-round score of 215 (1-under) earning her second behind Gabby Barker of Texas Tech (214). It was her best career finish since placing first at the Diane Thomason Invitational last fall.
Freshman Sophie Liu made her college début with the Hawkeyes by posting a final score of 226. Liu earned herself the second-best finish for the Hawkeyes with a tie for 22nd place. Junior Morgan Kukla followed up with a final score of 227, placing 30th.
Senior Jessie Sindlinger and junior Elisa Suarez came in at 57th and 72nd. Sindlinger recorded a three-round total of 239, and Suarez ended with a final score of 251.
The Hawkeyes will return to action on Sept. 26-28 for the GolfWeek Conference Challenge in Vail, Colorado.