TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Sophomore Samantha Brown carded an even-par 72 to lead Purdue Women’s Golf in the opening round of the NCAA Tallahassee Regional. As a team, it was not the Boilermakers’ day, as the Old Gold and Black sit in 10th place at 10-over par after the first 18 holes.
Despite the Boilers not playing to their strong form from the end of the regular season, there is plenty of golf left for them to rally and earn a third straight trip to the NCAA Championships. Purdue is 11 shots back of the Top 5 that qualify for the national stage, which can be made up quickly with two rounds remaining.
Brown was one of three Boilermakers to make four birdies at Seminole Legacy Golf Club. She parred the first eight holes before getting a birdie to fall at the ninth, completing a bogey-free front side. After giving the shot back on No. 10, the sophomore answered with a two-putt birdie at the par-5 11th hole. Brown added two more birdies on her way in, including a deuce on No. 13. She played the par 3s 1-under throughout the day, ranking third in the field.
Making her NCAA Regional debut, sophomore Michaela Headlee put together a strong round of 74 (+2). The Carmel, Indiana, native shook off nerves that resulted in bogeys on two of her first three holes, as she drained a 10-footer for birdie at the par-3 fifth to start her rally. Headlee rattled off four straight pars before beginning the back nine with birdies on Nos. 10 and 11. Her fourth and final birdie came on another par 3, No. 15, knocking in a 7-foot birdie putt following a great tee shot.
Ashley Kim and Lauren Timpf contributed 76s (+4) to the team score. Kim got off to a hot start with birdies on two of her first four holes, nearly making an eagle on the par-5 fourth that led to an easy tap-in birdie. Both Boilermakers made back-to-back birdies on No. 14 and No. 15 before playing the final three holes 2-over par.
The Boilermakers look to soar up the leaderboard on moving day tomorrow, teeing off alongside UTRGV (+13) and Little Rock (+27).
For updates throughout the rest of the tournament, follow Purdue Women's Golf on X and Instagram @PurdueWGolf.
BOILERMAKERS
T-18. Samantha Brown: 72 (E)
T-32. Michaela Headlee: 74 (+2)
T-50. Ashley Kim: 76 (+4)
T-50. Lauren Timpf: 76 (+4)
T-60. Luana Valero: 79 (+7)
TEAM LEADERBOARD
1. #3 Florida: 283 (-5)
T-2. #9 Wake Forest: 285 (-3)
T-2. #25 Florida State: 285 (-3)
T-4. Eastern Michigan: 287 (-1)
T-4: ULM: 287 (-1)
6. #15 UCLA: 290 (+2)
T-7. Kentucky: 291 (+3)
T-7. Clemson: 291 (+3)
9. North Florida: 296 (+8)
10. Purdue: 298 (+10)
11. UTRGV: 301 (+13)
12. Little Rock: 315 (+27)
