Alice Johansson won the Bettie Lou Evans Invitational in Lexington, Kentucky, marking the Cougar’s first individual victory in over three years.
The sophomore came from behind in rounds two and three to pull off the remarkable win, while helping the team finish in sixth place overall.
On day one, it was senior Madelyn Gamble who led the Cougs. She shot an even score in the first round, which was good for fifth overall. Sarah Skovgaard-Blis shot two-over-par, which was good for 12th place. Johansson, meanwhile, was in 24th after the first round of play, despite scoring a pair of birdies. She finished the day at four-over-par.
Johansson began her comeback in round two, when she shot four-under-par. Her six birdies on the day led the team, and her eight-stroke improvement vaulted her into third place overall. Gamble faded in round two, finishing the round in 23rd place, and leaving Johanson as WSU’s best shot at victory.
In round three, Johansson did not disappoint. She shot four-under-par for the second day in a row, and in doing so, she passed Texas Christian’s Kirstin Angosta to take the lead by a single stroke. She notched eight birdies in the final round, helping her rise atop the standings for WSU’s first individual win since 2020.
Skovgaard-Blis finished in a tie for tenth place. After shooting two-over in both of the first two rounds, she finished round three even, giving her an overall score of four-over-par.
Gamble’s six-over score in round two put a stain on what was otherwise a good tournament for her. She shot two-over on the final day, for her a total score of eight-over-par, good for eighth place.
Sophomore Sara Pineros finished in 58th, despite improving all three rounds. She shot nine-over in round one, then eight-over and seven-order in the following two rounds.
Grace Rubelsky made her WSU golf debut in the tournament. The freshman posted a score of 14-over-par in round one, improved to six-over in round two, and then fell to 15-over in the final round, giving her a total score of 35-over-par. She finished in 63rd.
The Cougars collectively finished sixth in an eleven-team field, with a team score of 30-over-par. They improved by five strokes as a team each round, from 15-over, to 10-over and 5-over. TCU won the tournament, while the hosting Kentucky finished second.
Next, the Cougars will travel to Fort Collins, Colorado for the Ptarmigan Ram Classic on Sept. 23.
