Women’s Golf 2019-20 Season Review

PROVO, Utah — The BYU women’s golf team tallied six top-5 finishes, including one tournament win, and recorded the third lowest 54-hole stroke average in program history during the shortened 2019-20 season.

“There were a lot of positives to take away from this season,” BYU head coach Carrie Roberts said. “We had some really low final rounds this season. Our win in Sahalee was satisfying after coming from behind to do so. Allysha Mae (Mateo) got her first win and she and Annick (Haczkiewicz) finished consistently in the top-15. We have a lot of positives to build on.”

Despite having their final regular season tournament and the WCC Championship canceled due to the Coronavirus outbreak, the Cougars placed in the top-5 in six of the eight tournaments they did participate in. BYU also boasted an 884.9 54-hole stroke average on the season, the third lowest in school history.

The Cougars recorded their lone tournament win at the Edean Ihlanfeldt Invite at Sahalee Country Club in their third event of the season. BYU battled through rainy conditions and used three individual top-10 finishes to secure its first tournament victory since the 2017-18 season. The Cougars finished at 31-over-par, one stroke ahead of second-place UC Davis.

The team placed second in two of its other three fall tournaments, the Coeur d’Alene Collegiate and the Rainbow Wahine Invitational. BYU shot a season-best 866 (+2) at the Wahine Invitational in Hawai’i and finished just three strokes behind first-place Sacramento State. The team’s third-round 281 (-7) in Hawai’i tied the fifth lowest 18-hole round in school history.

In the spring, the Cougars recorded three additional top-5 finishes at the Rebel Beach Intercollegiate, The Gold Rush and the BYU at Entrada Classic, their home event. The team capped off its season with a third-place finish at Entrada.

Mateo secured the first tournament win of her college career at Coeur d’Alene, carding a career-best 212 (-1). The sophomore from Honolulu, Hawai’i went on to tie for second in her following event, the Ihlanfeldt Invite, and recorded two additional top-5 finishes at The Gold Rush and the Entrada Classic. In all, Mateo tallied five top-15 finishes on the year and boasted a 72.8 stroke average, the second lowest in program history.

Fellow sophomore Haczkiewicz tallied four top-15 results on the season, her best coming at the Wahine Invitational where she tied for sixth place with a career-low 214 (-2). The Las Vegas, Nevada native recorded a 73.7 stroke average on the year, the eighth lowest in school history.

Junior Naomi Soifua also had four top-15 finishes during the 2019-20 campaign. Her best result came at the Wahine Invitational, where, like Haczkiewicz, she tied for sixth place with a career-low 214 (-2). Soifua also shot a school-record tying 64 (-8) in the third round of the Cougars’ first event of the season, the WSU Cougar Cup.

Senior Anna Kennedy and freshman Kerstin Fotu rounded out the team’s starting five for the majority of the season. Fotu’s best result of the year came at Coeur d’Alene where she tied for 15th with a 221 (+8), while Kennedy’s came at the WSU Cougar Cup where shed tied for 27th with a 218 (+2).

Freshman Cynthia Tu competed in five tournaments as an individual and one as a starter. Her lone start came at the Entrada Classic, where she tied for 25th place. Fellow freshman Alina Vannarath competed in one event as an individual, the Hobble Creek Fall Classic, where she tied for 71st.

Although Kennedy is unsure whether she will return next season due to the changes in NCAA eligibility requirements in response to the Coronavirus outbreak, BYU expects its remaining six players to return for the 2020-21 season.