FRISCO, Texas—Jax State bounced back from a challenging second round at the Conference USA Women's Golf Championship to post one of the better final rounds in the field to move up two spots on the leaderboard for a fifth-place finish.
 
In the second round which featured a three-hour suspension of play due to rain in the area which caused greens to flood, the Gamecocks were 17-over as a team but answered back with a four-over total of 292 in the final round on Wednesday to finish the 54-hole tournament with a 29-over team score of 893.
 
Western Kentucky won the event by seven shots over Delaware with a total of 877.
 
"I'm proud of the effort and persistence we showed this week," said coach Robbie Fields. "We started with one of our best opening rounds of the year which was one of our keys for the tournament and it put us in a good position. We didn't handle the challenge of the weather delay and conditions yesterday as well as we needed too which hurt. Throughout the week we had moments we had to bounce back from and today we did that tying our best round of the season to finish out the year."
 
Freshman Julie Kleppe led the way for Jax State, just a shot away from a spot on the all-tournament team with a five-over total of 221 to place sixth. Kleppe posted 75 in the second round with 15 pars, but two doubles on Wednesday on the fourth and 16^th holes had her finish with a 76.
 
"This was such an exciting week for Julie," said Fields. "For 36 holes she carried the load for our team and put herself in contention to win a championship in her first opportunity. She didn't close it out the way she wanted, but handled herself with confidence and belief which was rewarded with a top-10 to finish the year."
 
Kleppe was fifth in the field in Par 3 scoring at 2.92.
 
Sophomore Lara El Chaib moved five spots up the leaderboard on Wednesday with an even-par round of 72 to place 12^th in the field with a six-over 54-hole total of 222. El Chaib had birdies on the seventh, 15^th, and 16^th holes in the final round. She birdied the short Par 4 16^th in each round and was sixth in the field in birdies with nine.
 
Sophomore Rebekka Stutley placed 21^st with a nine-over total of 225, moving up four spots on the final day with a one-over 73 after a 75 in the second round. Stutley registered 17 pars in the final round with one birdie and just one bogey over her final 20 holes.
 
Senior Rachel Camp moved up five spots in the final round with a one-over 73 on Wednesday to place 28^th with an 11-over total of 227. Camp carded a 34 on the back nine of her final round with four birdies and was second in the field in Par 3 scoring at 2.83.
 
Senior Ebby Somers also wrapped up her time with the Gamecocks placing 39^th with a 17-over total of 233, carding a two-over 74 in her final round. Somers was even over the back nine, picking up a birdie on 13.
 
"Ebby and Rachel were freshmen when I got to Jax State and we got to learn and grow together through our four seasons," said Fields. "They leave a lasting impact on this program and our future because of their dedication and belief."
 
The Conference USA Championship was the third Top 5 finish of the season for the team in nine tournaments.
 
"It has been a challenging year but this team never gave up and kept getting better," said Fields. "We showed a lot of bright spots for our future being led by Julie, Lara and Bekky. We look forward to adding new pieces next year and continuing our growth and development."