FINDLAY, Ohio – For the third time in as many seasons, the UIndy women's golf team recorded a top-three finish at the NCAA Division II Championships. The Greyhounds (310-309-308-305) improved their team score every day on the way to a third-place showing among the best teams in DII – 10 back of winner Barry University. The four-day, 72-hole tournament, held at Findlay Country Club in Findlay, Ohio, concluded Saturday.
 
The performance follows a runner-up showing for the Hounds at last year's championships and a national title in 2015. UIndy now has five top-five finishes at nationals, including one in each of the last four seasons.
 
After battling rain yesterday and enduring a lightning delay, the teams enjoyed the best conditions of the week before the skies opened up just prior to the awards presentation. Barry edged Dallas Baptist by a single stroke to win the team title. The two were tied heading into the final pairing on 18, with BU Freshman Charlotte Puts shooting par on the final hole to seal the win.

Junior Annika Haynes (79-77-75-70) notched the highest individual finish by a Hound, sharing fourth place with a four-round score of +13. A product of Oakville, Ontario, Haynes concluded her championships with a two-under 70, matching the lowest score of the tournament. Her effort resulted in the highest finish for a Hound at the national championship since Lyndsay McBride won the individual national title in 2009.
 
Additionally, Haynes was the fourth different Greyhound in as many rounds to post the team's low score.

Freshman Pilar Echeverria (73-81-77-77) finished a fantastic freshman campaign with a 12th-place finish. She kicked off the tournament with a first-round low of 73 on the way to a four-round score of +20.
 
Sophomore Katharina Keilich (79-78-74-79) shot even par on the back nine Saturday to help earn a share of 13th. In the final three rounds, she combined to shot one-under par on the back.
 
Junior Paxton DeHaven (80-73-82-80) highlighted her tournament with a second-round 73 on the way to tying for 28th place, while junior Kylie Raines (79-81-84-79) birdied her final hole to share 50th.
 
The individual medal went to St. Leo's Marie Coors (74-75-75-71), who bested Barry's Charlotte Puts (75-76-76-70) by two strokes.


FRIDAY
The UIndy women's golf team held steady at third place but moved closer to the lead at the 2017 NCAA Division II Championships Friday. With just 18 holes remaining, the Greyhounds (310-309-308) will enter Saturday's final round six strokes back of leader Barry University. The 12-team, 72-hole tournament is being held at Findlay Country Club in Findlay, Ohio.
 
Once again battling the wind and now the rain and even an hour lightning delay, UIndy's third-round 308 was the second-lowest round of the day. Top-ranked Barry recorded the best round, as its 305 allowed it to leapfrog Dallas Baptist for the team lead.
 
Individually, three Greyhounds now sit in the top 10, as Katharina Keilich, Pilar Echeverria and Annika Haynes are all tied for ninth at +15.
 
Keilich (79-78-74) paced the Hounds Friday, carding a two-over 74 to improve her score for the third straight day. The Wetzlar, Germany native was one-under on the back nine on the way to a 16-spot jump on the player leaderboard. The Hounds have now had a different student-athlete post the team's low score in each of the first three rounds.
 
Haynes (79-77-75) fired a three-over 75 Friday as she too had a solid back nine (E), while Echeverria (73-81-77) chipped in a 77 to stay among the leaders. Paxton DeHaven (80-73-82) fell back to 19th place, and Kylie Raines (79-81-84) enters the final round in 46th.
 
DBU's Ann Parmerter and Marie Coors of St. Leo are tied for the individual lead at +8, seven ahead of the aforementioned Hounds' trio in ninth place.
 
The championships conclude tomorrow with the final 18 holes. Once again, Barry, Dallas Baptist and UIndy with be paired together, with tee times starting at 9:40 a.m. Follow the Greyhounds' progress with hole-by-hole results here.
 
UIndy has recorded three consecutive top-five finishes at nationals, including a runner-up performance last year and winning the school's first-ever NCAA team national championship in 2015.


THURSDAY
With half the tournament now in the books, the UIndy women's golf team remained in third place after two day of the 2017 NCAA Division II Championships Thursday. Led by junior Paxton DeHaven, the Greyhounds (310-309) crept two strokes closer to the lead, sitting nine back of leader Dallas Baptist and three behind second-place Barry University. The 12-team, 72-hole tournament is being held at Findlay Country Club in Findlay, Ohio through Saturday.
 
As was the case yesterday, the wind was a major factor on the course, but despite the challenging conditions, the Greyhounds were able to excel, particularly on the back nine.
 
Said Head Coach Brent Nicoson: "I am very proud of the group for playing a great back nine to keep us within striking distance; a +2 on the back nine in those conditions is very good. And Annika and Katie fought especially hard on the back to help us finish solid. We really needed that."
 
Overall, it was DeHaven (80-73) that led the way for UIndy Thursday with a one-over 73, vaulting her 29 spots and into the top 10 on the individual leaderboard.
 
"Paxton played a great round to lead us today," Nicoson said. "She was really solid in some very tough wind."
 
The Seymour, Ind., native matched the lowest score of the day by racking up 11 pars and three birdies and now sits in a three-way tie for seventh at +9.
 
Meanwhile, freshman Pilar Echeverria (73-81) endured a slight dip in the standings. After finishing day one at one-over par and tied for the lead, the national Freshman of the Year candidate carded an uncharacteristic 81, moving into 10th at +10 for the tournament.
 
Junior Annika Haynes (79-77) had a rocky start Thursday but rebounded nicely by shooting three-under par for the final 11 holes to finish the day with a 77 and jump up to 20th.

Sophomore Katharina Keilich (79-78) also had a tidy back nine, finishing with nine consecutive pars on the way to a 78, while junior Kylie Raines (79-81) penciled in an 81. They are tied for 25th and 37th, respectively.
 
Dallas Baptist (299-311) slipped back to the field a tad but retained the lead at the halfway point. The Patriots were the only team under 300 yesterday, but now their lead of 10 strokes has been trimmed to six after a second-round 311.
 
DBU's Ann Parmerter (+2) leads the race for the individual championship after carding a second straight 73. She is three up on St. Leo's Marie Coors (74-75) and seven ahead of DeHaven.
 
Third-round action continues tomorrow, with UIndy's tee times starting at 9:40 a.m. The top three teams will be paired together, putting the Hounds with DBU and Barry – the top two teams on both the championship leaderboard and the Golfstat Division II rankings.
 
"We are excited for tomorrow," admitted Nicoson. "We had a short team meeting after playing today and this group is really focused to make a run. Dallas Baptist and Barry are really solid teams that we respect so we know it won't be easy, but I have a group that can get things done and I expect us to play well tomorrow."


WEDNESDAY
The 2017 NCAA Division II Women's Golf Championships kicked off Wednesday with the first of four rounds. Led by freshman Pilar Echeverria, the Greyhounds (310) are positioned in third place through 18 holes, with Echeverria tied atop the individual leaderboard at +1. The 12-team, 72-hole tournament is being held at Findlay Country Club in Findlay, Ohio through Saturday.
 
In her first appearance at nationals, Echeverria is one of four student-athletes to card an opening-round 73. After teeing off on No. 10, the freshman from Guatemala City, Guatemala closed her day by shooting two-under on the front nine, climbing into a share of the lead at the quarter-way point.

"I am very pleased with Pilar's effort," said Head Coach Brent Nicoson. "She's a very good player, and when she stays in a good mindset, she's tough to beat. She was rock solid today in that tough wind, and we needed her round to keep us in the team title race."

Speaking of the team race, UIndy finished the round at +22 in warm and very windy conditions. A trio of Hounds settled at +7 to share 27th place, including Katharina Keilich, Annika Haynes and Kylie Raines. Junior Paxton DeHaven rounded out the team scoring at +8, good for 36th.

Following team-leader Dallas Baptist (299) and its 10-stroke edge, the Greyhounds are in a tight group of five teams within three shots of each other. Top-ranked Barry (309) is currently in second, followed by UIndy (310), Henderson State (311), West Texas A&M (312) and St. Mary's (312).

With Dallas Baptist creating some space and the cluster of teams looking to catch them, Nicoson knows his team has plenty of work to do.

"We had the round in good position through 13 holes but unfortunately let it get away from us. We cannot let that happen and win a championship. The conditions got very tough, and we didn't respond like a championship team should. We were not strong enough mentally to keep the good round going.
 
"We're sitting in third place, which is not where we want to be, but at the same time, we still have a great chance."