By Derrick Ow — Reporter
Day 1
The San Jose State women’s golf team experienced a manic monday in Fairfax, Calif.
SJSU played 36 holes all in one day at the Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invitational.
Meadow Club played difficult, but do not tell that to junior Antonia Malate or sophomore Kajsa Arwefjall.
They both continued their stellar play from last week as they are in contention for the individual title. Malate opened the tournament with an even par 72. In the second round she shot a 1-over-73.
The junior made her first eagle of the season on the par-5 15th hole. She is coming off a career best T-3 finish at the Gunrock Invitational in Sacramento.
Arwefjall shot an opening round 73 but then posted an even par 72. Her putter is scorching hot as she has made eight birdies and 22 pars.
They currently trail Stefanie Deng of Washington who has a three shot lead at 2-under-par.
The rest of the Spartans experienced tough times on the Alister MacKenzie design. Freshman Jordyn Parr currently sits at 8 over par after shooting rounds of 74 and 78.
Fellow freshman Louisa Carlbom is tied for 46th place at 13 over par. Sophomore Jadan Gonzalez is tied for 63rd place at 21 over par.
The Spartans finished at 21 over par which puts them in fourth place. They are 18 shots back of leader Washington who shot a combined 3-over-par 579.
SJSU starts their final round at 7:30 a.m.
Day 2
It was so close for San Jose State women’s golfer Antonia Malate.
The San Jose State women’s golfer came up just one shot short of her first collegiate win at the Juli Inkster at Meadow Club Invitational on Tuesday. Malate started the day three shots back and made two bogeys and a birdie during her first eight holes.
Then she approached the par-5 ninth hole where the round was ignited thanks to her second eagle of the tournament. She would also birdie the par-4 10th hole.
Her putter went ice cold afterwards as she made back to back bogeys on the 16th and 17th holes. She parred the 18th which put her at 1-over-par for the tournament.
All she could do was watch as University of Washington senior Rino Sasaki tried to claim her second career collegiate title. Sasaki just did enough as she shot a 1-under 71 to finish at even par to win the individual title.
Sasaki’s teammate Stefanie Deng was also looking for her first collegiate win. She came into the day with a three shot lead at 2-under-par. But her dream turned into a nightmare when she started the day with back to back bogeys.
Deng would recover with a birdie on the 9th but then had three bogeys on the back nine to finish at 2-over-par for the tournament. That was good enough for a tie for 3rd finish.
Another Spartan who continued her good form was Kajsa Arwefjall. The sophomore got her second straight top five finish. She shot a 1-over-par 73 to finish at 2-over-par for the tournament.
Every team in Fairfax, Calif. battled the elements with fog, mist and wind blistering in the players faces.
Freshman Jordyn Parr shot her second straight round of 78. She finished in a tie for 32nd place at 14-over-par. Fellow freshman Louisa Carlbom also shot a 78 to finish in a tie for 47th place at 19-over-par.
Sophomore Jadan Gonzalez’s round had more twists and turns than Lombard Street. She had four birdies on the scorecard but also had four bogeys, a double bogey and a triple bogey. Gonzalez would finish in a tie for 63rd place at 26-over-par.
SJSU finished in fourth place at 33-over-par 897 which is their second straight top 5 finish of the season. Washington continued to collect the hardware as they won the team title with a 12-over-par 897. It was the Huskies first tournament win since October 2018.
The Spartans will be heading for warmer temperatures at their next tournament, the Mountainview Challenge in Tucson, Ariz. The tournament will be co-hosted by the University of Missouri and Kansas State University and be played from March 19 through March 21.
Follow Derrick on Twitter @derrickq42
