After a shaky outing at Florida State, junior Jaclyn LaHa took control for the Virginia women's golf team, dominating the field and powering the squad to a first-place finish.
The Cavaliers traveled to Maryland for the Terps Invitational alongside 15 other teams, entering the tournament at No. 33, with only Kentucky ranked ahead of them at No. 32.
Virginia had to play two rounds on the first day, and the opening round proved rocky, with the Cavaliers posting their highest score of the tournament. LaHa started with a two-over 75, but the rest of the squad carried their weight — sophomore Kennedy Swedick and junior Mira Berglund each posted solid even-par rounds, while freshman Remi Bacardi and freshman Elsie Macleery came in at one and two over, respectively.
In the second round, LaHa exploded with a five-under 67, matching her career low and marking her fifth round in the 60s. She was not alone — Macleery and Bacardi also shot under par, each carding a one-under.
After day two, all five Cavaliers sat in the top five individually, and the team held first place, six strokes clear of second.
It was by far the best round Virginia played all tournament, though the competition tightened in the final round as Kentucky quickly responded to the Cavaliers' stellar performance.
Kentucky chipped away at the lead with a five-under round, but Virginia held firm, shooting a two-under of its own to maintain a two-stroke advantage.
Swedick, who had carded an even and a one-over in her first two rounds, climbed seven spots on the final day with a one-under round, finishing one-over for the tournament and tying for third — the best tournament finish of her career.
Macleery followed with consistent scoring, shooting one-over in the final round to tie for sixth place alongside Berglund, who also finished at one-over in the final round. Both ended the tournament at two-over.
Bacardi, solid throughout, closed with a five-over final round and dropped to a tie for 14th.
Those scores, while respectable, were not enough to fully shake Kentucky — but LaHa stepped up once again, posting a two-under to secure her first-place individual finish and keep Kentucky at bay by just two strokes.
LaHa's dominant performance drove Virginia to the team title, but the squad made sure her effort did not go unsupported, with each player contributing to the final result.
With the ACC Women's Golf Championship beginning April 16th, Virginia will need not only strong play from LaHa but a cohesive team effort to compete for a title.
It has been difficult to gauge where Virginia stands heading into the ACC Championship — the Cavaliers have struggled against conference opponents at tournaments like the Moon Golf Invitational but shown they can beat those same teams at events like the Gator Invitational.
What is certain is that their ceiling depends on the full roster showing up, with LaHa leading the charge and the rest of the squad delivering career-level performances alongside her.
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