Kelsey Chen put in the lowest round of her collegiate career as she finished her final round at six under par, which jumped her up seven spots on the leaderboard and landed her a second-place finish.
Chen’s second-place finish was the third time this season that she placed in the top three, as she’s put together a great season up to this point. Over the course of the tournament, Chen finished with a total score of eight under par.
As a team, Kansas State finished the final round at three under par with good rounds from Chen, Keen Visavapattamawan and Noa van Beek to help their score. However, the Wildcats were unable to find the fourth score they needed to help them jump up further in the standings.
“We never really got our fourth score today, which we needed to help us move up,” K-State head coach Stew Burke said. “However, there were some really bright spots, especially Kelsey [Chen] shooting a 66 the final round and Keen [Visavapattamawan] going under par to help carry the team.”
Visavapattamawan, a freshman from Thailand, finished in 25th place for the Wildcats as she finished her three rounds of golf at one over par. Her play was highlighted by her final round, where she finished at two under par and birdied four times in the last round.
Noa van Beek finished a shot back of Visavapattamawan at two over par for the tournament. Van Beek opened up the tournament with an even par round and finished her next two rounds both at one over par.
The tournament champion was Big 12 opponent Iowa State, which finished 20 under par and was highlighted by a first round where the Cyclones finished 15 under par. Behind them was Texas Tech, which shot 16 under par for the tournament. K-State finished two shots back of Missouri for fifth place.
“I know the ladies are frustrated, and I am too due to the quality of iron shots that I have seen this week,” Burke said. “Unfortunately, we just did not take advantage of a good play. It is a quick turnaround, so I am glad we are playing well as we look to put three good rounds together in the Bay Area.”
The Wildcats will now head back to California for their final tournament before postseason play. K-State will compete in the Silicon Valley Showcase from March 29-31.
