Four members of the South Carolina Gamecocks women’s golf team were chosen to compete as individuals in the NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Championship, according to an April 29 announcement. Junior Vairana Heck, junior Maylis Lamoure, sophomore Eila Galitsky, and freshman Molly McLean received at-large bids for the NCAA Regionals taking place from May 11 to May 13.
The selection is notable because all four athletes are ranked within the top-170 of the latest Clippd Player Rankings. Heck (No. 38) and McLean (No. 147) will play at the Tallahassee Regional hosted by Seminole Legacy Golf Club in Florida, while Galitsky (No. 40) and Lamoure (No. 161) will compete at the Louisville Regional hosted by University of Louisville Golf Club in Kentucky.
The Gamecocks were not selected as a team due to the .500 rule instituted two years ago in NCAA Division I women’s golf postseason selection. Teams must have an overall win-loss record above .500 through their conference championship to be eligible for postseason at-large selection. South Carolina finished with a record of 55-58-3 after facing one of the toughest schedules this season.
This year marks a break in tradition for South Carolina, which had made 26 consecutive NCAA Regional appearances since 1999 but missed out this season after tying for tenth place in stroke play during their conference championship and narrowly missing match play qualification by three shots.
It is also historic: this is reportedly the first time any program has had four individuals selected to compete in NCAA Regionals at the Division I level.
