Iowa women’s golf notebook | Hawkeyes finish second at Red Raider Invitational, venture east to Yale

The finish marked the program’s highest finish in a regular season match since winning the UNI Invitational in 2020 and the fifth-best score in program history.

Brad Schultz, Sports Reporter

September 27, 2023

Rohan Abernathy-Wee

Iowa’s Caroline Gray hits the ball during a practice at the Fink Vine Golf Course, on Wednesday, April 19, 2023. (Rohan Abernathy-Wee/The Daily Iowan)

The Iowa women’s golf team finished in second place at the Red Raider Invitational in Lubbock, Texas, from Sept. 25-26 — marking the program’s highest finish in a regular season match since winning the UNI Invitational in 2020 and the fifth-best score in program history.

Ten teams competed in this year’s Raider Invitational. Of the 10, five teams were from Texas, with the rest of the field scattered across the country.

But Texas Tech was the only team in the field to have qualified for the postseason last year. The Lady Raiders hosted the tournament for the first time since 2016, capturing the win over the Hawkeyes.

As a team, the Hawkeyes scored an 876 — seven over par and 29 strokes behind the Lady Raiders. And despite the Texas heat and humidity wearing them down, all five Hawkeyes earned top 25 finishes.

Iowa sophomore Kaitlyn Hanna led the team in scoring with a 219 — good for a 12th-place tie with three other golfers. Following her were sophomore Shannyn Vogler and freshman Ximena Benites, who finished in 18th place.

Texas Tech steamrolled the competition, winning the tournament with a team score of 847 — a whopping 17 under par. The Lady Raiders were the only team in the event to finish below par.

Texas Tech freshman Maja Ambroziak captured the individual title with a 209 — seven strokes under par. A native of Olsztyn, Poland, Ambroziak is a two-time Polish Junior Champion.

Campbell University finished in third place with an 885 — 10 over par. Despite the podium finish, the Camels finished the tournament 38 strokes behind champion Texas Tech.

Hawkeyes venture east

Following the Red Raider Invitational, the Hawkeyes won’t have a chance to relax as they travel to New Haven, Connecticut, to play in the Yale Invitational from Sept. 30 to Oct. 1. The event will be held at the world-famous Yale Golf Course, which has hosted the program since its inception in 1980.

Yale and Iowa opened the season together at the Badger Invitational in Madison, Wisconsin, from Sept. 17-19. The Hawkeyes ended the event eighth out of 15 teams while the Bulldogs struggled to a 10th-place finish.

But Yale is one of the more prestigious golf programs in the country with seven Ivy League championships in its 43-year history. The Bulldogs last won the Ivy League in 2018, although they did come close last season, finishing fourth.

Harvard enters the event as the defending champion after defeating Maryland by four strokes last season Though the Crimson did not make the postseason as a team last year, Isabella Gomez qualified as an individual, finishing 53rd at the Athens Regional.

The only other Ivy League school competing in this year’s invitational is Penn, who finished in sixth place in last season’s event. The Quakers earned a berth in the NCAA Palm Beach Regional last season, ending the regional in 11th place.

Quinnipiac joined Penn at last season’s Palm Beach Regional but couldn’t do any better, ending the event 12th out of 12 teams. The Bobcats return to the Yale Invitational looking to improve on their seventh place finish last season.