RESULTS HOT SPRINGS, Ark. – Arkansas Tech finished off a dominant performance at the 2015 GAC Women’s Golf Championships with a 50-stroke victory to capture its first GAC Championship on Tuesday at the Hot Springs Country Club on Tuesday. Harding’s Brittany Marquez set multiple records to win the individual medalist honor.
For the second time this week, the Golden Suns established a new GAC Championship 18-hole scoring record. Led by Rebecka Surtevall’s record 3-under 69 round, the Golden Suns carded a 6-over 294, 14 shots better than any team in the field. Surtevall jumped up into second position to lead four ATU golfers on the All-Tournament Team. Megan Jeffery finished a shot back of Surtevall to take third place. Caroline Fredensborg placed fourth and Taylor Kline tied for fifth.
Marquez built on the lead she established on Monday. She lowered her score for the second-straight round as her 2-under 70 established the second-lowest round in the four-year history of the GAC Championships. She finished five strokes ahead of Surtevall. At the previous three GAC Championships, the individual winner won by a single stroke. She finished her four-year GAC Championship career with a win, a runner-up finish and two fifth-place showings.
Henderson State held off Southwestern Oklahoma State to keep hold of second place. Ally Harris and Alison Davis finished inside the top 10. Katie Kilponen moved up five positions into a tie for 11th. Ana-Laura Gomez led the Bulldogs by finishing in a tie for fifth with Kline to earn All-Tournament honors for the second consecutive year.
East Central remained in fourth place while Southern Nazarene and Harding each made moves up the team leaderboard. Freshman Madelyn Lehr led the Tigers and Marion Broedys paced the Crimson Storm. Arkansas-Monticello backed up three positions to finish in seventh place and Southern Arkansas rounded out the team leaderboard. The Cotton Blossoms’ Lauren Johnson finished the week in a tie for seventh, the best individual finish by a UAM women’s golfer at a GAC Championship.
Arkansas Tech, Henderson State and Southwestern Oklahoma State all entered the tournament ranked among the top nine teams in the Central Region. The top nine teams will earn berths to the NCAA Division II Central Super Regional at Hillcrest Country Club in Bartlesville, Okla. The NCAA will unveil the field at 2 p.m. on Monday.
All-Tournament Team
Brittany Marquez - Harding, 74 72 70; 216 E
Rebecka Surtevall - Arkansas Tech, 76 76 69; 221 +5
Megan Jeffery - Arkansas Tech, 73 75 74; 222 +6
Caroline Fredensborg - Arkansas Tech, 73 75 76; 224 +8
Ana-Laura Gomez Southwestern Oklahoma State, 76 76 73; 225 +9
Taylor Kline - Arkansas Tech, 75 75 75; 225 +9