Fassi in lead; Hogs go 4-under at first round of NCAA regional

AUSTIN, Texas — Arkansas junior Maria Fassi led the field with seven birdies and finished round one of the 2018 NCAA Austin Regional tied for second place at the University of Texas Golf Course in Austin on Monday.

Fassi’s seven birdies helped the third-ranked Razorbacks to a 4-under 284 and second place with two rounds of play remaining.

The Pachuca, Mexico, native started her round with five birdies in the first 10 holes that she played. She stumbled a bit on holes 11, 12, and 13 but rallied playing her final five holes 2-under. Fassi’s 3-under 69 ties for the fourth-best round by a Razorback at an NCAA Regional.

Fassi is tied with three other players and they are just one shot behind the leader. The Razorbacks were one of just three teams with more than one player in the top-10 after the first round.

The team effort included a 2-under 70 from junior Dylan Kim and an even-par 72 from junior Kaylee Benton as Arkansas counted its second-best single round team total in program history.

Kim is tied for sixth and Benton is tied for 23rd after round one. Junior Cara Gorlei was 1-over with a 73 and senior Alana Uriell rounded out the Razorback scores with a 78.

The Razorbacks lead the field with 20 birdies in the first round on the par 72, 6,341-yard course.

Eighth-ranked Texas finished the day on top of the leaderboard with a 7-under 281, just three shots better than Arkansas. Michigan State is one shot back with a 285 followed by Virginia Tech and No. 35 Baylor shooting 288 to round out the top-5 team scores.

Play continues Tuesday and Wednesday with the top six teams from each of four NCAA Regional sites advancing to the NCAA Championship in Stillwater, Oklahoma, later this month.

The Lineup

The Field