Finishes live up to GCU Invitational's name

Monday, March 1

Phoenix, Ariz.

Grand Canyon

GCU Invitational

3/2/2021 3:50:00 PM | Women's Golf, Paul Coro

PHOTO GALLERY

Lopes defend home tournament title, claim 7 of top 16 spots

By: Paul Coro

It takes four players for a team to win a golf tournament. It took a team to dominate the GCU Invitational.

The Grand Canyon women's golf team defended its home tournament's title Tuesday by coloring the leaderboard in purple at GCU Championship Golf Course.

The Lopes' team lineup, which included three freshmen, won the title with a 3-over-par score that was 11 strokes better than runner-up California Baptist. With GCU's individual entries, the Lopes took seven of the 15-team tournament's top 16 spots.

"Going into the tournament, we felt more confident than the years in the past," Lopes head coach Lauren Giesecke said. "It was something that we've been looking forward to playing for so long and preparing for it so we could finally compete and show off how deep we are as a team. I think everyone was ready to go and prove it to everyone."

Siri Patchana

GCU took four of the 82-player tournament's top seven spots with senior Siripatsorn Patchana leading the Lopes' way in third place.

Patchana began this spring out of the GCU lineup but regained her form to finish 1 under par in the GCU Invitational's three rounds.

"I think she just needed to get back into a good routine and feel confident again," Giesecke said. "She bounced back to where she was. Every tournament she goes into, I honestly think she can win it. She has the game. She has the patience. She has the fight and the short game."

Patchana's putter turned hot for six birdies in the second round's front nine and she finished with eight consecutive pars Tuesday. After she finished seventh in the previous tournament in Las Vegas, Patchana is averaging 72.5 strokes per round over the past two events to be close to her team-best 72.3 average of last season.

"I grinded it out and it's right on time for the home tournament," Patchana said. "I'm really proud of my team. That confidence that we have is incredible for this team. I think this team is the best team so far in my four years. We have a lot of talented players. We all grind it out and know we can do it."

The team dynamic is coming full circle for Patchana, who was a WAC Championships medalist as a freshman when the team won a 2018 conference title. Freshmen Carly Strole, Lani Luafalealo and Constanza Guerrero were in the team lineup this week and each delivered in the top 11.

Strole saved her best practice, qualifying or competition round on the home course for the tournament's final round Tuesday. The graduate of nearby Goodyear Millennium High School shot 5 under par on Tuesday to finish in a fifth-place tie.

"Carly's always willing to learn," Giesecke said. "She always wants to pick our brains. She wants to know, 'How can I get better?' and then she does it the next time around. She's a quick learner. She has a lot more to learn, but she's killing it right now."

Strole puts herself in scoring position with long, controlled driving ability, but she converted more of those chances Tuesday. She made consecutive up-and-down par saves before dropping three consecutive birdies, including a 30-foot putt on the 18th hole.

"Coach B (assistant coach Kelli Bowers) walked up to me and said, 'We're only leading by four; we need to step it up,' " Strole said. "It was just cool to feel like I was doing something for the team, more than myself, and wanting that team trophy.

"It was so cool for me to come off and have everybody hug me and just be so happy for me. What a good atmosphere. We all want each other to succeed so I feel like we all push each other to be better."

Luafalealo was part of the fifth-place tie with Strole. The Honolulu, Hawaii, native went 5 under par for a five-hole stretch of her second-round 69 on Monday. She had made 12 birdies in the previous tournament in Las Vegas.

"Lani has been phenomenal the past few tournaments," Giesecke said. "She has a huge area of course management that we're helping her with. She has new clubs that she's absolutely in love with and is confident with them. She has a lot of distance and is an extremely hard worker."

Guerrero, who is from Spain, finished in 11th place at 4 over par to be a stroke ahead of Lopes teammates Carolina Sandstrom and Alexis Linam, who were individual entrants.

"Cons is a true competitor deep down," Giesecke said. "She might have a bad hole or two, but she'll fight her way back to get a birdie. She grinds out there. I just love the heart she puts into every round. You know she's going to put every amount of effort that she has into each hole and each shot. That's something you can't teach."

GCU senior Alexis Jones took fourth place as an individual entrant with a tournament score of even par, which was the best play of her career. She was the tournament leader after the first round at 5 under par because she birdied five of her first 11 holes Monday.

"She's really bounced back," Giesecke said of Jones. "She's worked extremely hard on her mental game and course management. To bounce back on our home course for her Senior Day was super special to watch."

The Lopes stay in Arizona for their next three tournaments, starting with the March 12-14 Clover Cup in a loaded field at Longbow Golf Club in Mesa. Four consecutive in-state tournaments and a regular-season finale in Fresno, California, build up to the WAC Championships in Boulder City, Nevada, on April 19-21.