08-05-2025
Kiara Romero, Oregon Ducks golf clinches NCAA championship appearance with regional win
The Oregon Ducks women's golf team is heading back to the NCAA Championships, which has become the expectation each year for one of the top golf programs in the nation.
On Wednesday, the Ducks clinched their spot in the championships with a win at the NCAA Canyon Regional, taking the tournament by nine strokes. It was sophomore phenom Kiara Romero who led the way, winning the individual championship at the regional with a -16 for the week. Her second round was a UO record 62 (-10), which put the Ducks well out in front of the rest of the pack.
Oregon shot a seven-under 281 on Wednesday to secure the tournament. Romero had a four-under 68, while Suvichaya Vinijchaitham was three-under, and Ting-Hsuan Huang was two-under. Behind the Ducks was Arizona State (-3), Oklahoma State (+2), No. 20 Mississippi State (+11) and Cal State Fullerton (+23).
"Super proud of our team for not only punching their ticket to the NCAA Championships, but for coming out here and getting a win against a really good field," head coach Derek Radley said, via the Oregon Athletic Department. "They didn't come here with the mindset of just finishing in the top five; they wanted to make a statement. Really pleased with the way our whole lineup performed today. It's not easy to get to the NCAA Championships, and these ladies have earned it. We're excited to get back to Carlsbad and see what we can do next week."
They always say that peaking at the right time of the season is among the most important things you can do, and the Ducks appear to be doing that right now. This is their third tournament win of the year, and their second in a row after running away with the victory in the Big Ten Championship a week ago. The last Oregon team to do this was in 2021-22, when the Ducks won the Pac-12 Championship, the Albuquerque Regional, and then finished as runner-ups in the NCAA Championship.
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The 2025 NCAA Championships begin on Friday, May 16, at Omni La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif. There will be three rounds of stroke play before the field is cut to the top 15 teams for a final round of stroke play on Monday, May 19, with the top eight teams then advancing to match play. The match play quarterfinals and semifinals will be played on Tuesday, May 20, with the championship match on Wednesday, May 21.
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