Colorado Finishes Fifth At Lamkin Invite

RANCHO SANTE FE, Calif. – Colorado recorded a fifth-place finish in match play on Tuesday at the Lamkin Invitational at The Farms Golf Course.

"Everybody played better and scores were better. We looked more like the team I know," head coach Anne Kelly said. "We played some good golf today."

Colorado, which started all five of its matches on No. 10, recorded a pair of 4&3 wins from freshman Ellie Gower and sophomore Alisha Lau to take a 2-0 lead. Sophomore Malak Bouraeda recorded her first win of the event, which clinched the win for CU. Freshman Issy Simpson tied her match to give the Buffs half a point, while Sophie Johnson did not have to complete her match.

"Alisha birdied the last three holes and was under par for the day and Ellie was around even par," Kelly said. "Malak did not get off to the greatest start and was a little frustrated because her opponent was playing well and got some pretty good breaks. But you just have to stay patient. And same for Issy. Issy was playing the DII National Champion last year. She was down most of her match but just hung really tough. I kept telling her to hang in there, be annoying, don't go away."

Gower won her third straight match, defeating Savannah Magallon 4&3. Magallon took an early 1 up lead after the first hole, but a birdie by Gower on No. 11 squared the match. Magallon would take her second 1 up lead with a birdie on No. 12. Both bogeyed on No. 13, but on No. 14, Gower made par to square the match for the second time. Gower made par again on No. 15 to take a 1 up advantage and increased it to 2 up as they finished the next three holes.

Still 2 up, both made par on No. 1, but a birdie by Magallon cut Gower's lead in half. Another square hole kept the score at 1 up, but Gower sank two consecutive birdies for a 3 up lead with four holes remaining. She clinched the match on No. 6 with another par.

Lau improved to 2-0-1 in the tournament with her 4&3 victory against Claire Hogle. Lau took an early 2 up lead in the match, but Hogle squared the round at No. 15. After both made par on No. 16, Lau took a 1 up lead on No. 17, which she would hang on to as the duo finished the back nine. Lau used a birdie on No. 1 to take a 2 up lead. Lau and Hogle exchanged the next two holes, but then three straight birdies by Lau put her 4 up and sealed the win for Lau.

Bouraeda came from behind in her match to defeat Emily Lichty, 2&1. Lichty took the first hole, but a birdie by Bouraeda squared the match. Lichty was able to regain the lead and had a 1 up advantage through No. 16, but that would be her last lead. Bouraeda made par on No. 17 to win the hole and the two squared No. 18. They would play the next two holes even as well, but Bouraeda would make par on No. 3 to win the hole and take her first advantage of the round. She sank consecutive birdies to increase her lead to 3 up with four holes remaining. The duo squared No. 6 before Lichty won No. 7, bringing Bouraeda's lead to 2 up. The match ended on No. 8 as both made par.

Simpson played to a draw against Jaime Jacob. Jacob had the advantage during the majority of the round after winning the second hole to take a 1 up lead. Simpson stayed steady and squared the match up on No. 5. After playing another even hole, Simpson took her first lead of the day with a par 4 on No. 7. After both made par on No. 8, it came down to the final hole, which Jacob won to draw even with Simpson.

Johnson was leading 2 up through the first nine holes when her opponent, Breann Horn, forfeited the match.

"The finish is not what we wanted, but I'm encouraged that in every round the team got better," Kelly said. "This will hopefully help us prepare for the next few tournaments. We needed to get outside and get on real greens to putt and chip, but I think everybody improved for sure."

Colorado will be back in action, Feb. 17-18, at The Rebel Beach Invitational in Las Vegas.

RESULTS
COLORADO DEF. CAL STATE SAN MARCOS, 4.5-0.5
Isabelle Simpson (CU) vs. Jaime Jacob, AS
Malak Bouraeda (CU) def. Emily Lichty, 2&1
Ellie Gower (CU) def. Savannah Magallon, 4&3
Alisha Lau (CU) def. Claire Hogle, 4&3
Sophie Johnson (CU) def. Breann Horn, 2 up

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Malak Bouraeda

Ellie Gower

Sophie Johnson

Alisha Lau

Issy Simpson