LITCHFIELD PARK, Ariz. — Montana State junior Maddie Montoya shot a 2-under-par 69 Wednesday to overtake Sacramento State's Caitlin Maurice and win individual medalist honors at the Big Sky Conference golf championship at The Wigwam Golf Resort.
Montoya, who started Wednesday's third round one stroke off the lead, carded four birdies on the day, including three in the final five holes. She birded the par-4 14th, par-3 15th and par-5 18th holes to surpass Maurice, who led the tournament after the first two rounds.
Maurice shot an even-par 71 on Wednesday, with the 11th, 12th and 13th holes proving costly. She was 4-over-par during the three-hole stretch, carding a double-bogey, followed by two more bogeys.
Montoya finished the three-day event 4-under-par, one stroke better than Maurice. Amy Hodgkins of Northern Arizona was third at 1-under, followed by MSU's Lauren Greeney and Sac State's Darla May Dela Toree, who both finished at even-par.
RELATED: Final Championship Results
Also for Montana State, Scarlet Weidig placed 16th at 8-over-par and Becca Tschetter was 34th at 17-over.
Sacramento State cruised to the team championship, finishing just one stroke over par for the tournament (282-285-286—853). The Hornets finished 15 strokes clear of second-place Weber State. Montana State was third, one stroke back of the Wildcats.
Montana was seventh in the team standings, with Raina Ports shooting a team-best 7-over-par for the tournament to tie for 14th on the individual leaderboard. Ellie Higgens (11-over) placed 21st for the Grizzlies, Kate Bogenschutz (12-over) was 24th and Isabella Johnson (13-over) was 27th.
It's the third consecutive Big Sky championship for the Hornets, who have claimed six of the eight available conference titles since 2017. The Hornets will represent the Big Sky at NCAA Regional competition, earning the league’s automatic bid.
Montaya, the first Bobcat to win the Big Sky’s individual title since 2013 when Paige Crawford outpaced the field, also earned an automatic bid to NCAA Regional action.
The Selection Show for the NCAA Division I Women’s Golf Regionals will air on the Golf Channel on April 23.
