SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Emilia Migliaccio won the first hole of her match against USC’s Cindy Kou, and the Wake Forest women’s golf team never looked back.
Lauren Walsh earned the third and clinching point with a 3-and-2 win over Brianna Navarrosa late in a warm day at Grayhawk Golf Club.
The Demons Deacons defeated the Trojans on Wednesday 4-1 to win the 2023 NCAA Women’s Golf Championship with only two matches reaching the 17th hole.
The team win marks the first title for the Wake Forest women’s golf team in program history. For the Deacons, it was their two seniors and a graduate who carried the day.
The first point came from senior Rachel Kuehn, who beat Amari Avery 6 and 4 after Avery hit her approach shot on the par-4 14th hole to the right and into the desert. She then conceded the match before even reaching the green.
Then it was Migliaccio, a graduate student who returned to Wake Forest using her COVID year after a season away from the team, pulling away on the back nine with consecutive birdies on Nos. 14 and 15, winning 4 and 2 in over Kou.
USC freshman Catherine Park, who held the 54-hole lead and finished runner-up in the individual competition, got the Trojans’ lone point with a 2 and 1 win against Carolina Lopez-Chacarra.
It’s the 10th NCAA team title for Wake Forest in six different sports.
