McCauley Ties for Big Ten Individual Title; Gophers Are 9th as a Team

HAVRE de GRACE, Maryland -- Bella McCauley started Sunday's final round in the Big Ten Conference Championships tied for 18th place, six strokes behind the leaders. But the University of Minnesota sophomore lit up the Bulle Rock Golf Course with an 8-under-par 64 and ended the day in a three-way tie for the individual title.

The former Minnesota state high school champion, who tied for second in the Big Ten last year as a freshman, posted a 54-hole total of 209 (7 under). She tied a pair of seniors, Michigan's Monet Chun and Indiana's Caroline Craig. Craig closed with a 70, Chun with a 71.

McCauley's 64 was the lowest round of the tournament -- by three strokes. She made eight birdies on Sunday and was bogey free.

Craig's teammate Carloine Smith matched the second-lowest round of the weekend on Sunday, with a 67, and tied for fourth at 211, along with Northwestern's Lauryn Nguyen, who opened the tournament with a 67.

With Craig and Smith both finishing in the top five individually, Indiana was able to edge Michigan State for the team crown with an overall score of 856. The Spartans were one behind at 857, six ahead of third-place Northwestern.

Minnesota finished ninth at 884.

McCauley started her final round on the 10th hole and made her first birdie at the 519-yard, par-5 11th. She birdied the other par 5 on the back nine, the 490-yard 15th, then added birdies at the 16th and 18th, both par 4s. The only woman ever to win the Minnesota Golf Champions (2021), McCauley birdied three of the first four holes on the front nine -- the 343-yard, par-4 first, 524-yard, par-5 second and 140-yard, par-3 third, and made it four birdies in the first five holes with another one at the 357-yard, par-4 fifth.

She parred each of the last four holes.

A year ago, McCauley shot a final-round 68 in the conference tournament to get a share of second. But her 54-hole aggregate of 213 was 12 behind the winning total shot by Crystal Wang of Illinois.


Big Ten Conference Championships

At Bulle Rock Golf Course

Par 72, 6,314 yards

Havre de Grace, Md.

Final results

Individuals

T1. Bella McCauley, Minnesota 74-71-64--209 (-7)

T1. Caroline Craig, Indiana 69-69-71--209

T1. Monet Chun, Michigan 73-66-70--209

T4. Caroline Smith, Indiana 73-71-67--211

T4. Lauryn Nguyen, Northwestern 67-74-70--211

6. Katie Lu, Michigan State 70-68-74--212

T7. Hailey Borja, Michigan 71-73-70--214

T7. Paula Balanzategui, Mich. State 67-72-75--214

T7. Isabel Sly, Illinois 70-70-74--214

T23. Hailey Loh, Minnesota 76-73-72--221

T49. Megan Furtney, Minnesota 75-76-76--227

T62. Grace Curran, Minnesota 76-79-75--230

T67. Emma Carpenter, Minnesota 79-76-77--232

T77 Ruby Chi, Minnesota 77-79-82--238

Teams

1. Indiana 285-288-283--856

2. Michigan State 279-283-295--857

3. Northwestern 287-295-281--863

T4. Purdue 292-289-283--864

T4. Michigan 288-287-289--864

6. Ohio State 298-288-286--872

7. Maryland 298-287-288--873

8. Wisconsin 295-294-293--882

9. Minnesota 301-296-287--884

10. Nebraska 301-293-299--893

T11. Rutgers 305-296-297--898

T11. Illinois 301-297-300--898

T13. Penn State 310-294-298--902

T13. Iowa 300-298-304--902