WESTWORTH VILLAGE, Texas -- At the beginning the season, LeTourneau head golf coach J. Paul Leslie III knew he had a special group of players on his YellowJacket women's golf team. That group has now accomplished a feat never before attained in program history.

Conference champions and a berth into the NCAA Championships.

Battling a long weather delay that shortened the final round to just nine holes, LeTourneau capped off its wire-to-wire team title and Kinley Pessel took medalist honors at the SCAC Championships on Tuesday at the Hawks Creek Golf Club.

LeTourneau shot a 7-over in the shortened-round on Tuesday to capture the team title with a 45-hole score of 52-over, 772 (311-301-151) for the program's first conference championship. The YellowJackets won by 31 strokes over St. Thomas and led the field after each of the three rounds.

The 52-over smashed the previous program-record (90-over) for tournament score at a conference championship. 

LeTourneau earns the SCAC's automatic berth to the NCAA Championships -- set for May 19-22 at the Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert, Calif. It will mark the first time the YellowJackets compete as a team at the NCAA Championships.

Pessel completed an incredible run through the tournament to claim her fifth individual title of the season. She solidified her candidacy for SCAC Golfer of the Year and becomes the first YellowJacket golfer since Leslie Lee in 2010 to win a conference title.

Pessel carded a 2-over, 38 in her nine holes on Tuesday to finish the tournament with a 7-over, 187 (77-72-38). She pulled away from the field and won by six strokes over St. Thomas' Cameron Frazier and fellow YellowJacket Emerson Swanner.

Pessel collected one birdie in her final round on Tuesday and had seven in the tournament. Her score of 7-over also set a program record in a conference tournament. Pessel collected first team All-SCAC honors with the finish.

Swanner also earned All-SCAC first team honors as she shot 1-over, 37 to move up three spots and finish in a tie for second overall. The sophomore ended the tournament 13-over, 193 (78-78-37) with two birdies on Tuesday to finish with five for the event.

Elena Jurado collected second team All-SCAC as she placed sixth. Jurado shot a 6-over, 42 on Tuesday and ended the tournament with a 17-over, 197 (77-78-42). She earns an All-Conference award for the first time in her career and it was her third career top-10 finish.

Hannah Newell, a four-year player that has been integral to the rise of YellowJacket women's golf, climbed three spots to finish in a tie for ninth and gather All-SCAC second team. Newell shot a 1-over, 37 with two birdies on Tuesday and was 20-over, 200 (81-82-37) for the tournament with five birdies. 

Newell became just the second player in program history to earn four career All-Conference honors, joining Leslie Lee.

Calli Hoesterey also moved up the leaderboard in the final round as she tied for 13th after a 3-over, 39 on Tuesday with one birdie. Hoesterey tallied five birdies in the tournament and finished 23-over, 203 (79-85-39).

The four All-SCAC honorees for LeTourneau -- as determined by their finish in the tournament -- marks the second straight year the YellowJackets placed four on All-Conference teams.

UP NEXT

LeTourneau heads to the NCAA Championships on May 19-22 in Palm Desert, Calif., and the Desert Willow Golf Resort.

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