Katja Mueller Ties For Individual Title at Tchefuncta Invitational

COVINGTON, La. – Katja Mueller tied for the individual championship after 54 holes at the Tchefuncta Invitational, then fell on the sixth playoff hole in her quest for the outright title Tuesday afternoon at Tchefuncta Country Club.
 
2022 Tchefuncta Invitational Final Results (PDF)
 
Mueller, who entered Tuesday's final round tied for third and one shot off the individual lead, posted a 1-under 70 over the final 18 holes, pulling into a tie with South Alabama's Siti Shaari with a 3-over 216. The duo then battled for six playoff holes before a bogey on number six gave Shaari the window she needed to outlast Mueller.
 
Mueller becomes the first Trojan to tie for an individual tournament title since Shania Berger did it twice during the spring portion of the 2016 season. She becomes the 16th different golfer in program history to claim at least a share of an individual title, registering her second top-10 finish of her freshman campaign.
 
The effort by the freshman helped guide Little Rock to a fourth-place showing, posting a 15-over 299 over the final 18 holes to finish at 51-over 903. The Trojans were one of just three teams to post a sub-300 round over the final day, marking the eighth round in the 200s this season.
 
Freshman Anna Dawson joined Mueller among the individual top-20, posting her best finish as a Trojan with a 16-over 229, tying for 17th individually. Dawson carded a 6-over 77 in round three, giving Little Rock two top-20 finishers for the second time this season.
 
Senior Kellie Gachaga just missed giving Little Rock a third, tying for 21st overall with an 18-over 231 behind an 8-over 79 over the final 18 holes. Sophomore Viktoria Krnacova tied for 27th at 19-over 232, shooting a 5-over 76 Tuesday, with senior Sydney Scraba rounding out the Trojan scorecard at 20-over 233, tying for 30th individually.
 
Little Rock made its mark on the par-fours at Tchefuncta, finishing second among the field with a 4.24 average and ranked second in total birdies with 28. Krnacova led the field in par-three scoring, finishing even for the tournament, while Mueller was tops among all players on par four holes at 3-under, four shots better than the closest competitor. Scraba tied for second on par-five scoring, finishing even for the event.
 
Host South Alabama captured the team title at 31-over 883, besting second place Southern Miss (44-over 896) by 13 strokes. Incarnate Word finished third at 48-over 900, three shots better than the fourth place Trojans, while fifth-place ULM (61-over 913) was 10 shots back of Little Rock.
 
The Trojans will have a few weeks off, returning to action March 14-15 at the Jackrabbit Invitational. Hosted by South Dakota State, the tournament will be held will be held in Boulder City, Nevada, starting a stretch of three tournaments in three consecutive weeks for Little Rock.
 
2022 Tchefuncta Invitational Little Rock Final Results

Place	Golfer	Score
T-1st*	Katja Mueller	72-74-70 = 216 (+3)
T-17th	Anna Dawson	76-76-77 = 229 (+16)
T-21st	Kellie Gachaga	77-75-79 = 231 (+18)
T-27th	Viktoria Krnacova	78-78-76 = 232 (+19)
T-30th	Sydney Scraba	81-76-76 = 233 (+20)
4th	LITTLE ROCK	303-301-299 = 903 (+51)

*Mueller lost on sixth playoff hole

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