Wake Forest, Stanford among NCAA women's regional leaders as weather alters schedules

Wake Forest further proved it’s tough enough to win another NCAA title on Monday.

In gloomy, cold and gusty conditions, the second-seeded Demon Deacons built an eight-shot lead over top-seeded Texas through two rounds of the NCAA Division I women’s golf regional in Lubbock, Texas.

Wake, up to No. 7 in the country after being ranked as low at No. 17 in the fall, sits at even par for the tournament and boasts three players in the top three on the individual leaderboard, including leader Carolina Chacarra at 4 under, two shots clear of Longhorns’ standout Farah O’Keefe.

Wake and Texas have a sizable advantage on the rest of the 12-team field. Iowa State is tied with Arizona for third at 26 over, one shot better than UC Davis, two ahead of Purdue and three better than both Texas A&M and Tennessee. The top five teams after 54 holes will advance to next week’s NCAA Championship at Omni La Costa in Carlsbad, California.

Play at the Rawls Course in Lubbock started a day earlier in anticipation of severe weather. Regional competition cannot extend past Wednesday, and just four years removed from the NCAA Baton Rouge Regional being scrapped because of weather, tournament officials wanted to take no chances.

Mark Bedics, the NCAA’s director of championships for women’s golf, told Golf Channel that there was the potential for no golf in Lubbock on Monday because of a “horrendous” forecast, but the outlook improved, and as a result, that regional could actually finish Tuesday, a day early. The final round is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. CT, though with heavy rain expected overnight, there’s a chance for a delay, according to one coach in the field.

As for the regional in Norman, Oklahoma, Stanford, the No. 1 team in the country and reigning NCAA champion, sits at 16 under and the leader by five shots over Northwestern after a 36-hole day at Jimmie Austin OU Golf Club. The forecast there for Tuesday is worse than Lubbock, though, and Bedics says there is the potential for a washout, though course staff have assured the NCAA that the course should be playable, even with 2 inches of rain, on Wednesday, when conditions are supposed to greatly improve.

Michigan State is third in Norman at 3 under followed by Baylor at 1 over and Tulsa at 2 over. Second-seeded North Carolina is sixth at 2 over, a shot better than the host Sooners. Fifth-seeded Duke is a shocking T-11 at 27 over, 25 shots out of fifth.

Weather was also a factor in Lexington, Kentucky, where wet and muddy course conditions forced ball in hand for the opening round at Keene Trace Golf Club’s Champion Course, site of the PGA Tour’s Barbasol Championship. The layout currently has some significant spots of ground under repair, including around some greens, but top-seeded Florida State had no issues, as the Seminoles lead at 7 under, seven shots ahead of Kansas State and Georgia Southern. USC and TCU are 1 over and 4 over, respectively, one shot up on Louisville and two clear of Morehead State.

The Trojans have advanced to an active-record 26 straight NCAA Championships, 12 better than the next best program, Stanford. USC star Jasmine Koo, ranked seventh nationally, didn’t record a bogey as she opened in 6-over 78, which is good for solo 52nd.

Top seed South Carolina leads UCLA by four shots in Charlottesville, Virginia. Arizona State, the host and No. 2 seed in Gold Canyon, Arizona, is one up on Oklahoma State. And another host, Ohio State, is three shots ahead of top-seeded Arkansas in Columbus, Ohio, despite an opening 75 from its best player, Kary Hollenbaugh.

Other than No. 13 North Carolina in Norman and No. 19 Texas A&M in Lubbock, no top-20 teams are currently outside the top five in their respective regionals.

Here is a glance at where things stand:

Lexington Regional
Keene Trace GC (Champion), Nicholasville, Kentucky, Par 72
In position: 1. Florida State (-7), 2. Georgia Southern (E), 2. Kansas State (E), 4. USC (+1), 5. TCU (+4)
Work to do: 6. Louisville (+5), 7. Morehead State (+6), 8. Western Kentucky (+9), 9. Miami (+12), 10. Vanderbilt (+13), 11. Pepperdine (+17)
Individual leader: Mirabel Ting, Florida State (-4)

Columbus Regional
Ohio State University GC (Scarlet), Columbus, Ohio, Par 72
In position: 1. Ohio State (-9), 2. Arkansas (-6), 3. LSU (-4), 4. UNLV (-1), 4. Kent State (-1)
Work to do: 6. Kansas (+1), 6. Xavier (+1), 6. SMU (+1), 6. Illinois (+1), 10. Houston (+7), 11. Illinois State (+11)
Individual leader: Nellie Ong, Ohio State (-6)

Charlottesville Regional
Birdwood GC, Charlottesville, Virginia, Par 71
In position: 1. South Carolina (-7), 2. UCLA (-3), 3. Ole Miss (-2), 4. Florida (-1), 5. Virginia (+2)
Work to do: 6. North Carolina State (+4), 7. BYU (+9), 8. UCF (+14), 9. Princeton (+14), 10. College of Charleston (+15)
Individual leaders: Louise Rydqvist, South Carolina, and Paula Francisco, Florida (-4)

Gold Canyon Regional
Superstition Mountain GC, Apache Junction, Arizona, Par 72
In position: 1. Arizona State (-2), 2. Oklahoma State (-1), 3. Oregon (+1), 3. Auburn (+1), 5. Mississippi State (+3)
Work to do: 6. Navy (+11), 7. Cal (+15), 8. Cal State-Fullerton (+16), 8. Virginia Tech (+16)
Individual leaders: Anna Davis, Auburn, and Davine Xanh, Cal State-Fullerton (-3)

Lubbock Regional
The Rawls Course, Lubbock, Texas, Par 72
(Through 36 holes)
In position: 1. Wake Forest (E), 2. Texas (+8), 3. Iowa State (+26), 3. Arizona (+26), 5. UC Davis (+27)
Work to do: 6. Purdue (+28), 7. Texas A&M (+29), 7. Tennessee (+29), 9. Campbell (+36)
Individual leader: Carolina Chacarra, Wake Forest (-4)

Norman Regional
Jimmie Austin OU GC, Norman, Oklahoma, Par 72
(Through 36 holes)
In position: 1. Stanford (-16), 2. Northwestern (-11), 3. Michigan State (-3), 4. Baylor (+1), 5. Tulsa (+2)
Work to do: 6. North Carolina (+2), 7. Oklahoma (+3), 8. Oregon State (+9)
Individual leaders: Meja Ortengren, Stanford; Ashley Yun, Northwestern; Hsin Tai Lin, Northwestern (-5)