#26 Women’s Golf Finishes Second at Jim West Challenge

SAN MARCOS, Texas – Trailing late in the Final Round of the Jim West Challenge, the University of Houston Women's Golf program staged a furious comeback before falling one stroke shy of the team championship at Kissing Tree Golf Club on Monday afternoon.

The Cougars' five-woman lineup drained a combined 10 birdies over its final four holes and finished the two-day, 54-hole event with a score of 21-under 843.

TCU won the team title with a score of 842. Ohio State and Texas Tech tied for fourth at 849 while UNLV (856), host Texas State (859), New Mexico (866), North Texas (867) and UTSA (881) completed the Top 10.

Under Carolyn Macow Leatherwood Head Coach Lydia Lasprilla, the 26^th-ranked Cougars finished under par as a team in their third straight tournament and earned their fourth straight Top-Three team finish or higher to cap their fall season.

Junior and two-time All-Conference star Moa Svedenskiold finished with a score of 6-under 201 on the 6,123-yard, par-72 course to lead four Cougars among the Top-20 leaders.

Starting off No. 1, the Halmstad, Sweden, native endured a tough start to her day and was 2-over through her front nine. However, she enjoyed a bogey-free back nine and drained three straight birdies to cap her Final Round and earn the 10^th Top-10 finish of her career.

Svedenskiold joined TCU individual Sofie Dimitrova in a tie for 10^th.

Final Jim West Challenge Leaderboard

Sophomore Maelynn Kim posted the Cougars' low round of the day with a 69, thanks to five birdies. The Katy, Texas, native started the Final Round off No. 3 and quickly moved into red numbers with birdies at No. 5 and again at No. 9.

Kim rebounded from her first bogey to sink three birdies in her final five holes and tied for 12^th with Ohio State's Nellie Ong at 211.

Junior Natalie Saint Germain added five birdies of her own in Monday's Final Round. After starting the day with a bogey, the Prague native regrouped and made birdies on three of her next six holes, including back-to-back efforts at Nos. 7-8, to tie for 14^th at 212.

Freshman Annika tied for 18^th at 214, thanks to a pair of birdies on her final three holes. The Costa Mesa, Calif., native earned her fourth straight Top-20 individual finish to begin her collegiate career.

Junior Alexa Saldana tied for 31^st at 216 while junior Brooke Morales, who was playing as an individual, tied for 59^th at 233.

TCU's Kirstin Angosta earned medalist honors at 206 to finish one shot ahead of McKenzi Hall (UNLV), Maria Garcia (New Mexico), Camille Min-Gaulter (TCU), Lauren Zaretsky (Texas Tech) and Reagan Chaney (Oklahoma).

JIM WEST CHALLENGE HISTORY
This marked the fourth straight season and sixth time in the last seven years in which the Cougars competed at the Jim West Challenge. Houston did not play in 2020-21 with the cancellation of the fall season due to the COVID pandemic.

Houston has earned third-place finishes or higher in each of its last three appearances and four overall during their tournament history.

In 2023-24, the Cougars finished third with a score of 28-under 836 after posting three straight sub-par team scores. Kim enjoyed three straight rounds under par and tied for ninth with a score of 9-under 207 to lead the Cougars.

Svedenskiold, Nicole Abelar and Hyeonji Kang joined her among the Top-25 individual leaders.

UP NEXT
With the conclusion of the Jim West Challenge, the Cougars closed their Fall schedule.

Houston now will take its holiday break before opening the spring season at the Collegiate Individual at Guadalajara Country Club in Mexico on Jan. 30-Feb. 2, 2025.

From there, Houston plays host to their own Chevron Collegiate at Golf Club of Houston in Humble, Texas, on Feb. 24-25, 2025.

The spring slate continues as they Cougars tee off at the Riverbend Intercollegiate at Riverbend Country Club in Sugar Land, Texas, on March 10-11, 2025.

SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Women's Golf by supporting Linking Coogs – UH's NIL collective – and by joining the P.A.R. 4 Club, which provides financial support directly to Houston Women's Golf for needs beyond its operating budget.

STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarWGolf on X (formerly known as Twitter) and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at UHCougarWGolf or on the team's Instagram page at UHCougarWGolf.

– UHCougars.com –

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