By Travis Rae, Communications and Sports Information Intern
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) released the qualifiers for the 2013 NAIA Women’s Golf National Championships on Thursday. The 19th annual event will take place at Wilderness Ridge Golf Club in Lincoln, Neb., May 21 – 24. First and second round pairings for the event will be announced Friday by 3 p.m. CDT.
Seventeen automatic qualifying teams punched their ticket with a team title in one of the NAIA’s conference/independent/unaffiliated group tournaments, while nine at-large selections, plus one host berth– determined using the final NAIA Women’s Golf Coaches’ Top 25 Poll – and nine individual qualifiers make up the 144-player field at this year’s National Championships.
Among the qualifying teams is last year’s national champion British Columbia. In 2012, the Thunderbirds defeated SCAD Savannah (Ga.) by two strokes. SCAD Savannah returns after earning an automatic berth by winning The Sun Conference Tournament. SCAD Savannah has been the top ranked team in the NAIA Women’s Golf Coaches’ Top 25 in each of the past four polls.
Nine individuals qualified including five automatics and four at-larges. To receive an individual automatic berth a player must win her respective conference tournament or regular-season individual title. The last automatic bid went to Jessica MacPhee, who is a 2012 All-Tournament Team returner. Teammates Christian Liggin and Sarah Gilliard of Coastal Georgia, Ava Lourenco of Biola (Calif.) and Trish Gibbons of College of Idaho, were selected by the national championships tournament committee.
2013 Women’s Golf National Championships Team Qualifiers
| School | Qualification |
| Baker (Kan.) | Heart of America Athletic Tournament Champion |
| Bellevue (Neb.) | At-Large No. 8 |
| Bethel (Ind.) | Crossroads League Tournament Champion |
| Bethel (Tenn.) | Unaffiliated Group No. 2 (GCAC/KIAC/TranSouth) Tournament Champion |
| British Columbia | Association of Indepndent Institutions Tournament Champion |
| Cal State San Marcos | At-Large No. 2 |
| Concordia (Ore.) | Unaffiliated Group No. 1 (CalPac/Cascade/GSAC) Tournament Champion |
| Cumberlands (Ky.) | Mid-South Tournament Champion |
| Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) | Great Plains Athletic Tournament Champion |
| Doane (Neb.) | Host Berth |
| Embry-Riddle (Fla.) | At-Large No. 3 |
| Grand View (Iowa) | Midwest Collegiate Tournament Champion |
| Lee (Tenn.) | Southern States Athletic Tournament Champion |
| Lewis-Clark State (Idaho) | Frontier Tournament Champion |
| Lindsey Wilson (Ky.) | At-Large No. 9 |
| Lubbock Christian (Texas) | At-Large No. 1 |
| Madonna (Mich.) | Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Tournament Champion |
| Northwood (Fla.) | At-Large No. 7 |
| Northwood (Texas) | Unaffiliated Group No. 3 (KCAC/RRAC) Tournament Champion |
| Oklahoma City | Sooner Athletic Tournament Champion |
| Olivet Nazarene (Ill.) | Unaffilated Group No. 4 (A.I.I./CCAC) Tournament Champion |
| SCAD Atlanta (Ga.) | Appalachian Athletic Tournament Champion |
| SCAD Savannah (Ga.) | The Sun Tournament Champion |
| USC Beaufort | At-Large No. 5 |
| Victoria (B.C.) | At-Large No. 6 |
| Wayland Baptist (Texas) | At-Large No. 4 |
| William Woods (Mo.) | American Midwest Tournament Champion |
2013 Women’s Golf National Championships Individual Qualifiers
| School | Qualification |
| Katie Legge, Cumberland (Tenn.) | Individual At-Large Selection |
| Christian Liggin, Coastal Georgia | Individual At-Large Selection |
| Hannah Griffin, Freed-Hardeman (Tenn.) | Unaffiliated Group No. 2 (GCAC/KIAC/TranSouth) Tournament Individual Medalist |
| Jackie Mee, Carroll (Mont.) | Frontier Tournament Individual Medalist |
| Jessica MacPhee, Thomas (Ga.) | 2012 All-Tournament Team Returner |
| Jordan Schaardt, Peru State (Neb.) | Heart of America Athletic Tournament Individual Medalist |
| Megan Garrison, Indiana Tech | Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Tournament Individual Medalist |
| Sarah Gilliard, Coastal Georgia | Individual At-Large Selection |
| Trish Gibbens, College of Idaho | Individual At-Large Selection |
