SEASIDE, Calif. — In the first tournament of the 2024-25 season, top-ranked Stanford women’s golf appears to be in postseason form. The Cardinal has a three-tournament winning streak going back to last postseason, and it looks like it is in great shape to extend that. Stanford is cruising after the first two rounds of The Molly Invitational, hosted at Bayonet & Black Horse in Seaside, leading by 16 strokes.
The only team in the 11-team field under par, Stanford is -5 through two rounds. The University of San Francisco is next closes at +11, with Washington at +13 and California at +14. The only other team with a round under par on Monday was Washington, as the Huskies led after the first round at -3.
After an incredible freshman season that ended with Pac-12 Player of the Year and WGCA Co-Freshman of the Year honors, Paula Martin Sampedro looks even better in her sophomore season. She is tied for the lead heading into the final round, with rounds of 67 and 71 on Monday. She compiled 11 birdies, including six in her first round of the day. Her 67 in the first round is her tenth career round in the 60s, having completed 30 tournament rounds as a Cardinal.
Meja Ortengren is in the top-10 through two rounds of her first collegiate tournament. She posted a 2-under 70 in the first round of the morning before cooling down a little as the temperature rose on the coast. Still, Ortengren is sitting in sixth place after knocking down birdie putts on three of her final five holes of the day, all coming on the front nine.
Just outside of the top-10 is Nora Sundberg, in a tie for 11th after posting rounds of 73 and 72 on Monday. Competing on her birthday, Sundberg was one of the most consistent golfers in the field, recording just four birdies but only going over par five times. Sundberg finishes the day one stroke better than teammate Leigh Chien at 2-over through two rounds. Chien is competing as an individual at The Molly and is impressing in her first collegiate tournament.
Kelly Xu had a great turnaround after shooting a 3-over 75 in the opening round, finishing with a 1-under 71 in her second round of the day. She sits in a tie for 12th overall with Chien but climbed nearly 20 spots on the leaderboard in round two. Andrea Revuelta is tied for 18th overall and Caroline Sturdza, also competing as an individual, is tied for 27th overall.
Martin Sampedro is in a three-horse race for the win. Kyra Ly of Oregon State and Riana Mission of San Francisco join the sophomore from Stanford at 138 through two rounds. Stanford and Washington are the only two teams with multiple golfers in the top-10.
The final round begins at 8:30 am PT in a shotgun fashion, with Stanford golfers teeing off on first four holes, as well as holes 13 and 16.
The Molly Invitational (Bayonet & Black Horse, par 72)
| Name | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Stanford | 287 (-1) | 284 (-4) | -- | 571 (-5) |
| T1. Paula Martin Sampedro | 67 (-5) | 71 (-1) | -- | 138 (-6) |
| T6. Meja Ortengren | 73 (+1) | 70 (-2) | -- | 143 (-1) |
| 11. Nora Sundberg | 72 (E) | 73 (+1) | -- | 145 (+1) |
| T12. Kelly Xu | 75 (+3) | 71 (-1) | -- | 146 (+2) |
| T18. Andrea Revuelta | 76 (+4) | 72 (E) | -- | 148 (+4) |
| T12. Leigh Chien | 73 (+1) | 73 (+1) | -- | 146 (+2) |
| T28. Caroline Sturdza | 77 (+5) | 74 (+2) | -- | 151 (+7) |