Idaho senior golfer Kayla Mortellaro continued an impressive spring season with a No. 3 finish at the Anteater Invitational in Irvine, Calif., which helped propel Vandal women’s golf to No. 3 overall.
Mortellaro was two strokes away from her 10th collegiate victory. She went into the tournament fresh off a win at the Dr. Donnis Thompson Invitational in Hawaii and placed high, but said it was a so-so performance.
“I think I stayed patient, which is the key to golf success,” Mortellaro said. “I didn’t have everything. I didn’t do anything spectacular and I didn’t do anything awful.”
Washington State won the tournament with a 904 through three rounds. The cougars held the lead, led by sophomore Mallory Kent who won the individual medal with a 220. Washington State’s Lindsay Harmon finished No. 7 with a 225.
The Vandals started cold in the first round, shooting a 312. Idaho was able to shake off the slow start and came back firing in the second. Idaho took off 13 strokes from the first round and leapt to No. 5.
Idaho coach Lisa Johnson said she’s happy with the team’s resilience.
“I’m pleased with how we recovered from the first round,” Johnson said. “I think the team is really coming together and the scores reflect our improvement.”
The team closed the tournament with a 302 to land in third, just three strokes off second-place BYU.
Sophomore Rachel Choi tied for No. 14 with a 230 and freshman Leilanie Kim finished tied for No. 21. Freshman Kaitlyn Oster tied for No. 28 at 234, and senior Teo Poplawski finished tied for No. 52 with a 242.
Mortellaro said this tournament was a good experience for the team and should act as a building block toward the WAC championship.
“I think it provides the team with confidence going into the WAC,” Mortellaro said. “Our three, four and five players learned a lot and I hope they take away the lessons of being patient and taking it one shot at a time.”
The Vandals have a month to prepare for the WAC Championship, which is April 23 to 25. The tournament is at the Longbow Golf Club in Mesa, Ariz. The Vandals will attempt to dethrone the Spartans of San Jose State, who have won three consecutive WAC championships.
“The time off is much needed. We’ve been working hard preparing for each tournament,” Johnson said. “I’m looking forward to working with each player, working on our short game and swings and creating competition in practice to help us prepare for the WAC Championship.”
It will be Mortellaro’s last shot at a WAC title. She said she is sad to be preparing for her last tournament, but said there’s an element of excitement as well.
“It’s a bittersweet feeling”, Mortellaro said. “My college career is winding down, but I’m personally excited for the challenge and the task at hand. I want to go in with a fun mindset and just see what happens.”
Kevin Bingaman can be reached at [email protected].