Caitlin McCleary (The Dalles, Ore.) finished the third round tied for first place, but fell in the first playoff hole of the West Coast Conference Championship Wednesday at San Juan Oaks Golf Club.
McCleary shot 74 (+2) during the final round of play, including a 38 (+2) over her first nine holes. She took the regulation 36 strokes on her last nine thanks to a timely birdie on the final hole of the round to put herself at 224 (+8) for the tournament. Victoria Fallgren of Gonzaga also finished the third round at 224 (+8), forcing a sudden-death playoff between her and McCleary. Fallgren birdied the playoff hole, snatching individual medalist honors away from McCleary.
Lori Pearson (Seattle, Wash.) also finished in the top ten, ending the tournament tied for ninth with a total score of 229 (+17). Pearson fired a five-over-par 77 for the second straight day Wednesday, offsetting one birdie and 12 pars with four bogeys and one double bogey.
Both McCleary and Pearson made significant improvements from last year's WCC championship, also played at San Juan Oaks. McCleary jumped up 13 spots, from 14th last year to this year's tie for first while Pearson jumped 16 spots from last year's finish in 25th.
Nicole Gaddie (Salt Lake City, Utah) and Shannon Quinn (Shoreline, Wash.) once again finished within one stroke of each other. Gaddie jumped ahead of Quinn on the final day by carding an 81 (+9) to finish in a tie for 22nd at 243 (+27). Quinn shot 83 (+11), giving her a total score of 244 (+28) and sole possession of 24th place.
Christine Cook (Yakima, Wash.) tallied an 81 (+9) Wednesday, her best round of the tournament. She has a three-day score of 251 (+9), good for a tie at 27th.
As a team, the Redhawks moved up to fourth place with a three-day total of 937 strokes (+73). They finished 26 strokes behind 20th ranked Pepperdine, who took the WCC team title with a score of 911 (+47).
With the conclusion of the conference championship, the Redhawks are now finished with the 2011-12 season, their last in the WCC. The Seattle U Women's golf team and 16 other SU sports will join the Western Athletic Conference July 1st, 2012.