@HurricanesGolf In Sixth After Second Round

AUSTIN, Texas – After finishing the first round of the Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational tied for 13th, the University of Miami golf team rallied behind a strong performance by junior Kailey Walsh to finish round two alone in sixth place.

Miami’s improvement of seven on the leaderboard was best in the tournament.

The Hurricanes were able to battle 35-mph gusts to shoot a second round score of 306 (+18), the lowest of the tournament.

Miami opened the morning controlling the front nine with eight combined birdies, three more than the team had the entire first round.

Walsh finished the afternoon hitting for par or better on nine of her last 10 holes. She matched her first round score shooting an identical 74 in the second round.

The junior jumped 14 positions on the player leaderboard, leaving her tied for eighth entering the final round of competition.

Senior Leticia Ras-Anderica and sophomore Delfina Acosta also saw their names climb the player leaderboard.

Ras-Anderica’s three birdies pushed her 22 spots into a tie for 35th. Acosta matched her teammate’s birdies with three of her own and improved her positioning by 13 and is also sitting tied for 35th.

The Canes’ largest improvement on the player leaderboard came from sophomore Daniela Darquea. At one point, Darquea had streak of 10 consecutive holes in which she either birdied or parred. She climbed the leaderboard 26 spots, tying for 22nd.

Head coach Patti Rizzo was impressed with her team’s ability to remain focused despite having to battle the weather conditions.

“The girls played great today,” Rizzo said. “They were mentally tough and hung in there. I’m very happy. One more day to go.”

The Canes led the entire tournament with 11 second-round birdies, including three on 18.