A lot can happen in one month's time. In the case of the UF women's golf team, that means practicing how to have a top-five finish.
The team finished fifth in The Landfall Tradition in Wilmington, N.C., after a month since its last tournament.
Freshman Andrea Watts and sophomore Jessica Yadloczky tied for 10th place. Watts had a consistently strong tournament, shooting 11 over par for the tournament. She, along with Evan Jensen, led the team through the first two rounds.
"Andrea came into this tournament struggling and we worked with her on getting rid of those freshman jitters," UF coach Jill Briles-Hinton said. "I am very proud of her performance this weekend. It appears that all of the work she has been putting in is paying off. However, she, along with everyone on the team, needs to continue to work hard to reach their potential."
Yadloczky roared back after a sluggish start which saw her shoot 6 over par in the first round. Her resilient 1-over-par third round leapfrogged her from 17th to a share of 10th.
The other Gator sophomore, Hannah Yun, also shot progressively better. Her 11-over-par first round dwindled down to a 3-over-par third round.
The fifth wheel of the rotation, Brittany Nelson, had a tough go, shooting 81-83-83.
Wake Forest, the highest-rated team heading into the tournament, won with a team score of 880, 16 over par for the tournament.
The fifth-place finish was UF's best this season.
The Gators have one more tournament for the fall season. The Collegiate Match Play Championship will be held in the Gators' backyard at Ginn Reunion Resort in Kissimmee. Play begins Nov. 2.
