Florida Southern Wins Women’s Golf National Championship, Iacobelli Wins Individual Title
For the eighth straight year, the NCAA Division II Women’s Golf Championship belongs to an SSC institution, as Florida Southern (1188) finished 10 strokes ahead of Rollins (1198) to win the program’s fourth women’s golf national title. Individually, Florida Tech’s Daniela Iacobelli fired a four-round score of 293 to finish one stroke ahead of Nova Southeastern’s Maria Garcia-Austt (294) to claim the individual championship.
The event had a distinct SSC flavor, as Florida Southern’s Lindsey Bergeon (295) rounded out the top three, and SSC golfers held seven of the top eight places. The title is the eight consecutive crown for SSC schools, as Florida Southern won in 2000, 2001, and 2002 before Rollins reeled off four straight championships is 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2006.
Despite shooting over 300 for the first time on Saturday, Florida Southern finished with a 36-over 1,188. Second-ranked Rollins made a late push in the final round, shaving five strokes off of the Florida Southern lead. The Tars finished second with a 46-over 1,198. Sixth-ranked Ferris State completed the tournament in third place with a 76-over 1,228.
Rounding out the field was Drury (+85 1,237) in fourth place. Thirteenth-ranked Tarleton State (+100 1,252) placed fifth, while 27th-ranked North Dakota (+103 1,255) earned a sixth place finish. Fourteenth-ranked Northeastern State (+124 1,276) ended the tournament in seventh place, and 42nd ranked Truman State (+143 1,295) was in eighth place.
Iacobelli became the first golfer participating as an individual to earn medalist honors. After starting the day tied for first place, Iacobelli eagled the par five 10th hole and followed with a birdie on the par three 12th en route to the title. She finished the tournament with a five-over 293 (72-74-73-74).
Another individual, Maria Garcia-Austt of Nova Southeastern finished second with a six-over 294 (71-79-70-74). A pair of Florida Southern golfers earned the third and fourth positions. Lindsey Bergeon finished at seven-over 295 (72-74-74-75), while teammate Heather Burgner carded an eight-over 296 (75-72-74-75). Drury’s Tonya Choate, who started the final round tied for the lead, rounded out the top five with a nine-over 297 (76-72-71-78). Cristina Gugler was Rollins’ top finisher, placing sixth with a four-round score of 298 (80-74-69-75). Her 69 on Friday tied the NCAA Championship record for the lowest round.