Completed Event: Women's Golf at Rainbow Wahine Invitational on October 20, 2025 , , 12th of 19
W Golf
at Rainbow Wahine Invitational
12th of 19
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Monday, May 11
Ann Arbor, Mich. | University of Michigan Golf Course
Grand Canyon
vs
NCAA Regional Tournament
Vakasiuola finishes top 15 at NCAA Regionals
5/13/2026 4:28:00 PM | Women's Golf
Freshman goes 2 over, tallies field best 13 birdies
ANN ARBOR, Mich. – When the players took the turn after putting out par putts on the ninth green, two names appeared as the front runners to take the individual automatic qualifying spot at the NCAA Regional Tournament at University of Michigan Golf Course.
Grand Canyon's Alexis Vakasiuola was one of those names.
The freshman out of San Tan Valley, who graduated from Combs high school 12 months prior was not only competing among the best in the nation but defeating some of the best.
Vakasioula's day ended at 1 over for a 2 over 54-hole card. She fell five shots back of Isabella McCauley, who birdied three straight holes on the back nine in a tip of the cap notion from head coach Brent Nicoson after momentum grabbers turned into long putts or chip in birdies for the senior from Minnesota.
"I just think this week was a really great experience," Vakasiuola said. "There are a lot of things I think I have grown from this week. Obviously, I played with a great player who had two great days, but those are seniors and I am a freshman, and to see that I am capable of sticking with them gives me that much more confidence.
But while Vakasiuola returns to the desert and begins her offseason training, her part in Ann Arbor is one Lope Nation can see as growth of a player and a program.
Vakasiuola began the season with no collegiate events under belt and ends as a veteran voice heading into her sophomore season. While she got better over time, including six straight top 10's prior to Ann Arbor, the team gradually decreased its scoring average and most notably had a 3rd place showing at the Mountain West Championship, a tournament it led by one shot after 36 holes.
"I think the team has matured so much so over this season," said Vakasiuola. "We have grown so much closer together and have gained confidence, even showing in conference that we could win it. It was awesome to see the team grow like that as well as myself. There were a couple of things months ago I was not doing in part of my game, and this season, being around the team and having us come together, I am doing them now and it's exciting to see that growth."
Birdies are golf's best friend and Vakasiuola totaled 13 of them in Ann Arbor, tied with Southern California's Elise Lee for the tournament high.
Vakasiuola began rounds one and two with bogeys and broke free of that trend in Wednesday's final round. In fact, her first bogey came on the par 4, 7th, after a birdie on the par 4, 6th. She birdied the 10th and saw herself two shots back of McCauley, but a rare double bogey on the par 3, 12th, put her back to a four-shot deficit.
But as Vakasiuola typically does, she birdied her very next hole and wiped away the double with a next hole mentality.
"She turned some heads this week," Nicoson said. "People were coming up to me and saying, 'I can't believe she is just a freshman.' This was a tough course in hard conditions and for a freshman to handle that like she did is incredible.
After some rough starts to her rounds previously, she bounced back and was head-to-head with the eventual individual winner and unfortunately after a double on 12, you give McCauley a ton of credit for how she finished. But to miss out by one spot with a chance of going to the National Championship this early in her career, I can't say enough of how proud I am of her."
She shot 71/72/72 for the week with Wednesday's 1 over played in an overcast 55 degrees with winds upwards to 25 miles per hour in gusts. Rocking a knitted Lopes headband that fit over the lavender hat, multiple layers and a hand warmer seen to the comparison of NFL quarterbacks in a huddle, the cold never effected the girl from the desert.
Grand Canyon's Alexis Vakasiuola was one of those names.
The freshman out of San Tan Valley, who graduated from Combs high school 12 months prior was not only competing among the best in the nation but defeating some of the best.
Vakasioula's day ended at 1 over for a 2 over 54-hole card. She fell five shots back of Isabella McCauley, who birdied three straight holes on the back nine in a tip of the cap notion from head coach Brent Nicoson after momentum grabbers turned into long putts or chip in birdies for the senior from Minnesota.
"I just think this week was a really great experience," Vakasiuola said. "There are a lot of things I think I have grown from this week. Obviously, I played with a great player who had two great days, but those are seniors and I am a freshman, and to see that I am capable of sticking with them gives me that much more confidence.
But while Vakasiuola returns to the desert and begins her offseason training, her part in Ann Arbor is one Lope Nation can see as growth of a player and a program.
Vakasiuola began the season with no collegiate events under belt and ends as a veteran voice heading into her sophomore season. While she got better over time, including six straight top 10's prior to Ann Arbor, the team gradually decreased its scoring average and most notably had a 3rd place showing at the Mountain West Championship, a tournament it led by one shot after 36 holes.
"I think the team has matured so much so over this season," said Vakasiuola. "We have grown so much closer together and have gained confidence, even showing in conference that we could win it. It was awesome to see the team grow like that as well as myself. There were a couple of things months ago I was not doing in part of my game, and this season, being around the team and having us come together, I am doing them now and it's exciting to see that growth."
Birdies are golf's best friend and Vakasiuola totaled 13 of them in Ann Arbor, tied with Southern California's Elise Lee for the tournament high.
Vakasiuola began rounds one and two with bogeys and broke free of that trend in Wednesday's final round. In fact, her first bogey came on the par 4, 7th, after a birdie on the par 4, 6th. She birdied the 10th and saw herself two shots back of McCauley, but a rare double bogey on the par 3, 12th, put her back to a four-shot deficit.
But as Vakasiuola typically does, she birdied her very next hole and wiped away the double with a next hole mentality.
"She turned some heads this week," Nicoson said. "People were coming up to me and saying, 'I can't believe she is just a freshman.' This was a tough course in hard conditions and for a freshman to handle that like she did is incredible.
After some rough starts to her rounds previously, she bounced back and was head-to-head with the eventual individual winner and unfortunately after a double on 12, you give McCauley a ton of credit for how she finished. But to miss out by one spot with a chance of going to the National Championship this early in her career, I can't say enough of how proud I am of her."
She shot 71/72/72 for the week with Wednesday's 1 over played in an overcast 55 degrees with winds upwards to 25 miles per hour in gusts. Rocking a knitted Lopes headband that fit over the lavender hat, multiple layers and a hand warmer seen to the comparison of NFL quarterbacks in a huddle, the cold never effected the girl from the desert.
Players Mentioned
/ Women's Golf
Head Coach Brent Nicoson Meets the Team | August 29, 2024
Friday, February 07