Catherine Park Record-Tying 64 Leads Resurgent USC At NCAA Championship

Women’s Golf | May 20, 2023

Freshman Catherine Park matched the NCAA Championships record for lowest score in relation to par with an 8-under 68 to lead a resurgent USC women’s golf team in the second round of the 2023 NCAA Championships at Grayhawk G.C. in Scottsdale, Ariz., on Saturday (May 20).

A day after opening with an 8-over, the Trojans rebounded with a 12-under 276 to move to 4-under 572 (296-276), shaving 20 strokes off their first round effort.

That left the Trojans in seventh after 36 holes, one back of a two-way tie for fifth while Wake Forest leads the 30-team field at 17-under.

The next step for USC comes Sunday when Troy needs to make the 15-team 54-hole cut. A day later, it will take a top 8 finish after Monday’s final round to secure a spot in the eight-team championship match play bracket for the first time since 2019.

USC’s 12-under 276 today matched the program record for most under par at an NCAA Championship. It equals Troy’s best round from its title run at the 2013 NCAAs.

Park, meanwhile, is in second place overall at 9-under 135 (71-64) and one off the individual lead. She is vying to become USC’s sixth individual NCAA champion.

USC took a huge step toward its team goals thanks in large part to Park, who matched LSU’s Megan McChrystal’s 2010 64 for the best-ever round at nationals in relation to par.

She did so thanks to a near flawless day. She went out at 4-under and got to 7-under at 14 before her first bogey of the day on 15. But she came back with birdies on 17 and 18 to close out a 64, tying the second-best single-round score in USC history and the best at the NCAA Championships.

Junior Brianna Navarrosa and sophomore Amari Avery supplied duplicate 3-under 69s that were key to USC’s success today as well.

For Avery, the 69 matched USC’s season-record for rounds in the 60s with 11, equaling All-American Kyung Kim’s 2014 mark. Avery is now also tied for 3rd on Troy’s career 60s chart with 21, one off the school record shared by Kim & Sophia Popov.

Avery, who went bogey free today, is now tied for 17th at 3-under overall.

As for Navarrosa, she matched her second-best round of the season today thanks to a 4-under front 9 and just a bogey on the back.

Xin (Cindy) Kou turned in a 2-over 74 today, including two key late birdies that helped USC to its 276.

Kou and Navarrosa are tied…