When play resumed Tuesday morning, with just nine holes remaining, the Cavaliers trailed the No. 18 Tigers by nine strokes. UVA's four scoring players managed to complete the back nine at the Guadalajara Country Club at a combined 5-under par. At the same time, LSU struggled down the stretch and played the same holes at 6-over par.
Junior Beth Lillie (Fullerton, Calif.) posted the Hoos' best overall finish, placing sixth at 5-under 211. With UVA holding a one stroke lead, Lillie carded a birdie on the par-5 18th hole to finish her round at 2-under 70. Her 54-hole total of 5-under 211 was a career-best mark. Her finish was the ninth top-10 outing of her career.
Virginia entered the tournament ranked No. 41 in the first Golfstat standings of the spring. The event's 14-team field included six teams ranked in that poll's top-25. The Cavaliers were the host school for the tournament.
Meet IJGA Collegiate Invitational’s head rules official, Claudia Camargo:
— Virginia Women's Golf (@UVAWomensGolf) February 16, 2020
• Head of FMG’s national Rules Committee, IGF Women’s Chair
• Officiated at @Olympics, @TheOpen, @usopengolf, 3 @uswomensopen #RulesQueen 👑 pic.twitter.com/NWKpsumZQs
"I'm so proud of the team for our fight and belief that we can win any tournament we play in," Lillie said. "Our grit and confidence really showed competing in this stacked field. The energy from everyone was some of the best I've ever been a part of in my three years so far and I can't wait to compete the rest of the spring."
Lillie had 41 pars during the event, the most of any of the 73 competitors.
Smyth led the field during the week by playing the course's four par-5 holes at 9-under par, including three birdies on those holes during the final round.
"Going into the last nine holes, even knowing we were nine shots back, we never gave up and I could feel the energy throughout the team this morning," Smyth said. "I'm really proud of how we came together as a team this week and how hard we worked until the last putt."
The victory was the first for Virginia since its 2018 season-opening win at Michigan State's Mary Fossum Invitational in Ria Scott's debut as UVA's head coach.
"From the minute they arrived in Guadalajara, our team's mindset and attitudes were in the right place," Scott said. "We are so proud that the hard work they've been putting in has come together in for them in competition. Marissa (Dodd, assistant coach) and I have always believed that this team is good - hopefully this win helps them realize it to be true."
-- Thanks to the University of Virginia Women's Golf for this report.
