The Iowa women’s golf team closed out the fall slate in the Hurricane Invitational Tournament. The three-round event was held at Biltmore Golf Course in Coral Gables, Florida, from Oct. 28-29.
The tournament featured the likes of squads such as South Alabama, Florida International, North Florida, Florida Gulf Coast, Big Ten rival Nebraska, and host school Miami vying for the title.
The Hawkeyes finished in fourth place out of 11 teams, marking Iowa’s second consecutive top-five finish and second best position of the season behind a championship victory at the Dianne Thomason Invitational from Sept. 30-Oct.1. The Hawkeyes have claimed a top-10 finish in each of their four tournaments this season.
Second-year Ximena Benites led the way for the Hawkeyes, firing a total tournament score of 215, one stroke under par and tying her in fourth place with Miami’s Rebekah Gardner. Fellow second-year Maura Peters secured a career-best invitational score of 206, landing her in 22nd place and marking her second-best finish of the season.
Benites recovered from a rough start in the first round where she shot a measly five strokes over par. The sophomore bounced back after that, firing a 69 in both the second and third rounds to secure her first top-five finish of the season.
Elsewhere, third-year Riley Lewis recorded a 223 to finish tied for 29th, fellow third-year Shannyn Volger landed in a tie for 34th, and fourth-year Paula Miranda tallied a disappointing 225 to conclude in a tie for 38th place.
“It was great to see three consistent rounds this week,” Iowa head coach Megan Menzel told Hawkeye Sports. Ximena and Maura both posted personal bests as Hawkeyes and it was a solid team effort. The team has put in a lot of work this fall and we are all looking forward to a productive offseason and a strong spring season.”
Miami claimed the team title, shooting a 12-under-par 852, including an impressive 10-under par in the final round. Olivia Gronborg earned the individual crown, finishing with an eight-under par 208 and completing a clean sweep of both championships for the Hurricanes.
Up Next
This concludes the fall season for Iowa. They will return to action on Jan. 31 to Guadalajara, Mexico for the Collegiate Invitational, hosted by the Virginia Cavaliers.