Kansas State women's golf ends eight-year postseason drought with NCAA Regional bid
MANHATTAN — The Kansas State women's golf team spent a year stewing over its 2024 postseason snub, but it also served as motivation for the Wildcats.
On Wednesday, the Wildcats' perseverance paid off when they were selected as the No. 5 seed in the 2025 NCAA Lexington Regional. It will be their first team postseason appearance since 2017.
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"It just means so much to me," second-year K-State coach Stew Burke said. "They worked so hard. They wanted it."
The Wildcats are now headed to Keene Trace Golf Club in Lexington, Kentucky, May 5-7 as part of a 12-team field. The top five regional teams advance to the NCAA Division I Women's Golf Championship May 16-21 in Carlsbad, California.
The regional competition will be stiff with No. 1 seed and ACC champion Florida State, No. 2 USC, No. 3 TCU and No. 4 Vanderbilt. But K-State goes into the regional with some momentum.
Related: Kansas State golfer claims Augusta National Women's Amateur championship
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Related: Kansas State women's golfer Carla Bernat qualifies for NCAA Championship
Kansas State golfer Sophie Bert follows through on a shot during the women's Big 12 Championship this week at Houston Oaks Golf Club in Huckley, Texas.
The Wildcats had a strong final day in the Big 12 Tournament last week to finish fifth as a team, with senior Sophie Bert claiming the individual championship and teammate Carla Bernat tying for second. Bernat also won the prestigious Augusta National Women's Amateur title earlier this month.
"It's awesome to be a part of the history like that," said Bert, a senior from Deurle, Belgium, who transferred in from East Tennessee State this year. "It's an amazing feeling."
K-State is ranked No. 28 in the latest National Collegiate Golf Rankings and currently holds a school-record scoring average of 287.66, nearly three strokes better than a year ago.
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While the Wildcats did not qualify as a team last year, Bernat, a senior from Castellon, Spain, made it as an individual and placed third in the Bryan (Texas) Regional, advancing to the NCAA Championship.
Arne Green is based in Salina and covers Kansas State University sports for the Gannett network. He can be reached at agreen@gannett.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @arnegreen.
This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Kansas State women's golf claims NCAA Lexington Regional bid
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