MSU women's golf qualifies for NCAA Championship after late push, playoff win

Michigan State golfer Taylor Kehoe helped lead MSU's late push to advance to the NCAA Championships in the Chapel Hill regional. The Spartans advanced in a playoff after finishing tied for fourth place through three rounds

The Michigan State women's golf team advanced to the NCAA Championship after qualifying in a three-team playoff in the final round of the Chapel Hill regional.

MSU jumped up three spots in the final round to finish in a fourth-place tie with Virginia and North Carolina State at 18-over par. In the playoff, each team had all five golfers play one hole, and teams with the lowest two combined scores advanced.

The Spartans, along with Virginia, claimed the final two spots and are among the 30 qualified teams to play in the championship round at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., from May 22-27.

MSU was sitting in seventh place to start the final round at 16-over par, but a 2-over par team performance on Wednesday put the Spartans in position to qualify.

MSU was led by senior Taylor Kehoe, who shot 3-under par in the final round and finished 3-under for the regional, finishing fourth overall as an individual. Freshman Lucia Valderrama shot even-par in the final round and 4-over for the regional, finishing tied for 16th.

Kehoe birdied the par-5 12th hole in the playoff, which helped put MSU over the top. Senior Paula Balanzategui, who had the highest score among the Spartans' five golfers, came through with a clutch par on the 10th hole in the playoff.

Freshman Sarisa Pojanalai and junior Ana Sofia Murcia rounded out the Spartans' scoring, finishing at 6-over par and 11-over par, respectively. Pojanalai was just 1-over par in the final round.

Contact Nathaniel Bott at nbott@lsj.com and follow him on X @Nathaniel_Bott

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: MSU women's golf qualifies for NCAA Championship after playoff win