The #10 Middlebury women's golf team holds sixth place with a score of 298 following Tuesday's opening round of the NCAA Championship on the Mountain View course at the Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert, California. After 18 holes, #2 Carnegie Mellon holds the top spot at 291, while #8 Washington and Lee (292) and #1 Emory (293) round out the top three.
 
TOURNAMENT INFORMATION

• Location: Desert Willow Golf Resort (Palm Desert, Calif.)
• Host School: Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges
• Weather: Sunny, 88
• Par: 72
• Yards: 5,873
• Teams Competing: 34

HIGHLIGHTS

• Ella Han and Julia Hua paced the Panther contingent with even tallies in their initial rounds. Han amassed four birdies over the first seven, including three straight on holes two through four. Hua finished at par or better throughout the front nine and scattered five birdies during the opening 18.
• Elizabeth Whalen shares 34th place with 10 other golfers, logging a score of 75. She showcased a steady effort, bouncing back from a bogey to begin the day with eight consecutive pars to wrap the opening half. She logged pars on each of the last five holes to wrap the day.
• Rounding out the scorers was Season Wei, who recorded a trio of birdies en route to a 79. She is tied for 84th alongside 11 competitors.
• Cailyn Park recorded seven pars across her debut on the national stage.

NOTES

• With a 72, Hua shaved four strokes off her season low.
• Whalen's score of 75 marks her best collegiate round, improving on her prior best of 77 set in the first 18 of the Northeast Invitational in April.

The Panthers continue NCAA action on Wednesday, beginning on Hole 10 of the Firecliff Course at 10:00 a.m. ET. The top 15 teams and top six individuals not on advancing teams will qualify for Thursday's third round.