Gigi Zera putting at the Division III 2026 National Championships

Jimmy Naprstek/Kodiak Creative

Women’s Golf Battles in Round One at National Championships

Zera sits inside top-20

5/19/2026 5:44:00 PM

PALM DESERT, Calif. - Fighting the heat out west, the Illinois Wesleyan University women's golf team sits on the cutline after round one of the NCAA Division III National Championship Tuesday, May 19. The Titans carded a 19-over par score of 307 at the 5873-yard, par 72 Mountain View course at Desert Willow Golf Resort in Palm Desert, Calif.

The Titans are currently tied with Sewanee in 14th-place. On an extremely tight leaderboard, IWU is just four shots outside of the top-10. After tomorrow's round, the field will be chopped to the top-15 teams.

Sophomore Gigi Zera (Glenview, Ill.-Loyola Academy) captained Illinois Wesleyan in round one, using three birdies, including one on her final hole of the day, to turn in a one-over, 73. The score ties Zera's low single round at a national championship as she currently sits in 18th-place.

A trio of Titans recorded a six-over score of 78 to round out the top-four scores. Junior Nora Cerroni (Waukesha, Wis.-Waukesha North) aided the Green and White effort with her sub-80 score. Fellow junior Emily Gastrau (Wauwatosa, Wis.-Wauwatosa East) and sophomore Grace Fagan (Kirkwood, Mo.-Visitation Academy) each recorded a 78 in their championship debuts. The three are currently in a tie for 68th-place.

No. 3 Carnegie Mellon leads a contested leaderboard following an opening round three-over, 291. No. 10 Washington and Lee and No. 1 Emory trail by one and two strokes, respectively in the team race. Individually, the Generals' Toral Bhatt carded the lowest score of the day at three-under, 69 to lead after 18 holes.

The Titans will tee off at 8:40 a.m. PT tomorrow, May 20 at the 5773-yard, par 72 Firecliff course as they fight to make the cut. Live results can continue to be followed here.

IWU Individual Standings
T18. Gigi Zera 73
T68. Emily Gastrau 78
T68. Grace Fagan 78
T68. Nora Cerroni 78
161. Julia Henry 92

Team Standings
1. Carnegie Mellon 291
2. Washington and Lee 292
3. Emory 293
4. NYU 296
5. Claremont-Mudd-Scripps 297
6. Middlebury 298
T7. Amherst 300
T7. Randolph-Macon 300
10. Pomona-Pitzer 303
T11. WashU 304
T11. Redlands 304
T12. Carleton 306
T12. Williams 306
T14. Sewanee 307
T14. Illinois Wesleyan 307
16. Dubuque 311
T17. Denison 312
T17. Mary Hardin-Baylor 312
T19. George Fox 317
T19. Grinnell 317
T21. Saint Mary's 319
T21. Piedmont 319
T23. Ohio Northern 322
T23. Marymount 322
25. LeTourneau 323
26. York 325
27. Aurora 326
28. UW-Stout 327
29. Northwestern-St. Paul 334
30. Washington & Jefferson 344
31. Catholic 347
32. Transylvania 349
33. SUNY Cortland 365
34. Suffolk 372

Print Friendly Version