Underclassmen propel Buffs to win at Causeway Invitational

The Buffaloes take home first place at the Causeway Invitational. The squad was led by Teemapat Pateetin(second from right) and Ellen O’Shaughnessy (fourth from right), both of whom finished 3-under. (Photo by CU Athletics)

For the second time this season, the Colorado Buffaloes women’s golf team took home hardware, winning the Causeway Invitational on Tuesday. 

The Buffs finished even-par in Sacramento, California, beating out the UC Davis Aggies (+4) and the Sacramento State Hornets (+5).

University of San Francisco's Eva Pett took home the individual title, shooting 7-under. No other member of the quintet shot under par, placing Dons at fifth overall (+20). 

Underclassmen Teemapat Pateetin and Ellen O’Shaughnessy led the black and gold at the tournament, both shooting 3-under. The duo finished in a four-way tie for second place individually.

Pateetin played her best golf in the first round, holing six birdies en route to a 3-under performance. The freshman traded scores in the second and third rounds, finishing 1-over and 1-under, respectively. 

O’Shaughnessy’s first round got off to a rocky start. The sophomore recorded a double-bogey on the fourth hole and a bogey on the fifth hole, putting herself in an unfavorable position early. However, the experienced golfer found a rhythm, finishing the first round with four birdies to score 1-under. 

The Dublin native continued to play exceptional golf, shooting 2-under in the second round and even in the third round. O’Shaughnessy’s 3-under score is her new 56-hole career-best at the collegiate level. 

Junior Carolyn Fuller finished 3-over and in 12th place individually. She played the best golf in the second round, shooting 1-under. Unfortunately for Fuller, her 2-over score in the first and third rounds dropped her out of the top-10 individuals. 

Maya McVey and Vanessa Ngo rounded out the Buffs’ quintet in California. Neither golfer was able to get into a groove at the tournament. Despite shooting 1-over in the first round, McVey finished 7-over due to six bogeys in the second round. 

Ngo struggled in the opening and closing rounds of the tournament, notably shooting 7-over in the third round. She dropped 19 spots on the leaderboard after her final round, finishing in a tie for 39th individually. 

Freshmen Brenna Higgins and Ananthi Vivek were sent as individuals to the Causeway Invitational. 

Higgins started strong, scoring 2-under in the first round with the help of four birdies. She collapsed in the second round, shooting 7-over on the front nine and finishing 9-over on the round. She finished 9-over on the tournament, good for a tie in 33rd place. 

Vivek had troubles from the get-go. The Chennai, India native holed 13 bogeys and just one birdie throughout the tournament. She finished in a tie for 47th place (+14). 

Colorado moved up two spots to No. 45 in the national rankings. The UCF Knights are currently the highest-ranked Big 12 team, sitting at No. 16. There are 10 other Big 12 programs that sit above the Buffs in the rankings. 

Although the win is huge for the Buffs, the tournament was not stacked with talent. The Buffaloes were the highest-ranked squad, followed by UC Davis (No. 65), Sacramento State (No. 69) and Cal Poly State (No. 90). 

With just two more tournaments before the Big 12 Championship, Colorado needs to keep building momentum if it wants a chance to compete with the best squads in the conference. 

The Buffs will be back in action in Palos Verdes, California, for the GameAbove Invitational starting on March 9.