Mississippi State golfer Samantha Whateley won her first collegiate tournament on Sunday, finishing with a three-day total of 204 (9-under) at the Mason Rudolph Championship in Franklin, Tenn.
Whateley became the 15th Bulldog to win an individual title, and made quick work to extend the program’s streak of at least one individual title in a season to five years. Her previous best finish was in a tie for third at the Chevron Collegiate last year, and Sunday marked the first time she scored 60s in all three rounds at a tournament.
The junior had a career-best performance over three days, shooting a consistent 69-67-68 over the course of the tournament to keep the trophy in Starkville. Teammate Avery Weed, who won the tournament last year, tied for fourth while Ines Belchior and Harper Hinkley tied for ninth in the individual standings.
Belchior, a freshman, registered her first Top-10 finish while competing in her first-ever college tournament, finishing 2-under. She is also the first Bulldog to finish under par in their collegiate debut since Julia Lopez Ramirez in 2021.
As a team, the Bulldogs finished two strokes behind Vanderbilt in second. The two programs were the only teams to finish the weekend under par as a collective, and the Bulldogs finished 19 strokes ahead of North Carolina.
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