Keating Surges Into Second, Buffs In Fifth At Pac-12 Championships

PLEASANTON, Calif. – Senior Alexis Keating climbed into second place here Tuesday at the Pac-12 Women's Golf Championships after firing a University of Colorado postseason record 6-under par. Keating's record performance helped the Buffaloes card a 4-under par 284 team score as they are in fifth place heading into Wednesday's final round at Ruby Hill Golf Club.

Keating has recorded the top two rounds in CU postseason history as her 66 on Tuesday matches her final round in last year's Pac-12 Championships and it sets a new record in relation to par as her 6-under total bested her 5-under posted at the par 71 Boulder Country Club course.

Collectively, Colorado recorded a second consecutive subpar round with its 284 and are 6-under for the tournament (286-284—570). The Buffs were one of only five teams to shoot under par on day two and posted the third-lowest team score of the second round. Their 284 was the third-best postseason round and CU's 36-hole total of 570 is the best postseason performance by 15 strokes, which the Buffs set last year in the Pac-12 Championships.

Southern California shot 275 or 13-under par and extended its lead to 13 strokes over Arizona and UCLA, who are tied for second place at 10-under par. Arizona State fell one spot to fourth at 7-under par as Colorado rounds out the top five, just one stroke behind the Sun Devils.

“Alexis played really well today, a solid day all-around for her and the rest of the team played well, too,” said Colorado head coach Anne Kelly. “It was perfect weather conditions again and the course was there for the taking. Everyone on the team is competing really hard and it's just a credit to this conference and the level of competition.”

Keating, 8-under par for the tournament, is only one stroke behind leader Gabriella Then of Southern California, who led all golfers in the second round with a 7-under 65. Keating made 10 pars, 7 birdies and only 1 bogey on the day as she played both sides at 3-under par.

“I'm so happy for Alexis—nobody deserves it more than she does,” said Kelly.

Junior Esther Lee had a difficult day on the course, more specifically on the back nine as she finished the day carding a 73 or 1-over par total. At the turn, Lee was even-par for the round. She started the back nine with two consecutive pars, then completed the next four holes at 2-over par with three bogeys and a birdie. Sitting at 2-over with three to play, Lee had a strong finish recording par-birdie-par. She enters Tuesday's final round at 1-under (70-73—143) and tied for 18th place.

Sophomore Brittany Fan also finished round two with a 1-over par 73. She had 13 pars and a pair of birdies against a trio of bogeys. Fan was 1-over par just two holes in, but played solid golf over the next 11 holes at 2-under par with two birdies and nine pars. She slipped a bit at the finish, shooting plus-2 over the last five holes, but is still in prime position to earn a top 20 finish. She is tied for 26th overall at 1-over par, 72-73—145 for the event.

A day after matching her career-best mark of the spring season, freshman Gillian Vance tied an overall career-record and played her best round in a team event when she shot 72 in the second round. Her even-par day brings her 36-hole total to 147 or 3-over par and is tied for 39th place. She recorded 12 pars and three birdies against three bogeys. She made the turn at 1-over par and finished the final nine holes at 1-under par.

“I am really happy and proud of Gillian for the way she played today,” said Kelly. “Her two rounds thus far are very good for a freshman playing at the Pac-12 Conference Championships.”

Junior Natalie Vivaldi is tied with Vance in 39th place, also sitting at 3-over par, 147 for the tournament after shooting a 1-over 73 in round two. Her second round, one stroke better from Monday consisted of 12 pars, 3 birdies, 2 bogeys and 1 double. Vivaldi struggled on the front nine, carding a 3-over with a bogey and double, but fought her way back on the last nine to shoot 2-under par, highlighted by three birdies.

Trailing Then and Keating is Arizona's Haley Moore—the leader on the first day. She is in third place at 6-under par. A quartet of golfers are tied for fourth, four strokes off the pace at 5-under par.

The Pac-12 Championships conclude on Wednesday with the final round set to start at 9:30 a.m. MDT. Colorado will once again tee off from the first hole and play alongside Oregon.

BUFFALO INDIVIDUALS
Rank	Name	Score
2.	Alexis Keating	70-66—136
T18.	Esther Lee	70-73—143
T26.	Brittany Fan	72-73—145
T39.	Natalie Vivaldi	74-73—147
T39.	Gillian Vance	75-72—147
TOP 5 INDIVIDUALS
Rank	Name	Score
1.	Gabriella Then, Southern California	70-65—135
2.	Alexis Keating, Colorado	70-66—136
3.	Haley Moore, Arizona	66-72—138
T4.	Robynn Ree, Southern California	70-69—139
T4.	Lilia Vu, UCLA	70-69—139
T4.	Linnea Strom, Arizona State	71-68—139
T4.	Tiffany Chan, Southern California	67-72—139
TEAM SCORES
Rank	Team	Score
1.	Southern California	278-275—553
T2.	Arizona	286-280—566
T2.	UCLA	282-284—566
4.	Arizona State	285-284—569
5.	COLORADO	286-284—570
6.	Oregon	286-289—575
T7.	Stanford	287-294—581
T7.	Washington	289-292—581
T7.	Washington State	287-294—581
10.	California	295-289—584
11.	Oregon State	292-293—585