TOLEDO, Ohio – Northern Illinois University sophomore Jasmine Ly completed a wire-to-wire run to win the first Mid-American Conference women's golf individual championship in school history Sunday at Stone Oak Country Club in Toledo, Ohio. As a team, NIU finished second behind Kent State, which won its 23rd consecutive MAC Women's Golf title. The Huskies earned their fifth straight top three finish at the MAC Championships.
 
Ly shot a one-over par 73 to earn a four-stroke victory over Kent State's Chloe Salort. She was the only player in the field to shoot under par for the tournament with a 54-hole score of one-under par 215 after rounds of 69, 73 and 73.  Ly held a one-stroke lead over the Golden Flashes' Emily Price entering the final round and never surrendered the lead with two birdies and three bogeys on the day. 
 
"It was great to see Jaz come through with the win today," said NIU head coach Kim Kester. "She had a cushion coming down the stretch, and she just handled the pressure unbelievably all day. Her composure was top notch and it was exciting to see her come through all three days and bring home the title."
 
For her part, Ly said she did not know what her lead was until the end
 
"Honestly even on the last hole, I thought [Price] was only a couple strokes back," Ly said. "I wasn't really sure until my last tap in at the end. [Coming into today] I just wanted to play my own game and focus on what I wanted to do. [Winning] feels great; it hasn't fully sunk in yet, but I'm super excited for regionals."
 
Ly also noted that her putting was the key to her play throughout the tournament.
 
"My putting was good throughout the entire event," said the Windsor, Ontario, Canada (Holy Names HS) product. "Knowing that I was putting well helped a lot and made me more confident in the other parts of my game. I had [Associate Head Coach] Frame walk with me on the back 9 and it helped calm my nerves."
 
As a team, the Huskies tallied a 304 on Sunday to claim second place for the second straight year and the third time since 2017.  NIU's score of 907 over the three rounds was 18 strokes behind Kent State's 889 and 19 strokes clear of third-place Akron. Bowling Green, Ball State and Toledo rounded out the top six teams.
 
Kester was pleased with the play of the Huskies as they continue to close the gap on the Golden Flashes.  
 
"The three days here were fantastic," Kester said. "They gave it everything they had, stuck to their game plans and we were in it all the way, we weren't blown out. We had a chance to put ourselves in position to make a run and we did that. That's what you want, you want a chance to win. We're closing the gap, each year it's getting better and better, and the future is bright."
 
With her win, Ly has qualified for an individual spot in the NCAA Regionals to become the first Huskie to play in the NCAA. She will find out where she will play when the field is announced on Wednesday.
 
Both Ly and senior Sofia Gomez Enriquez (Asunción, Paraguay/Montverde Academy), who finished her career with a final round 74 to tie for fifth, were named to the MAC All-Tournament Team. Gomez Enriquez finished at 11-over par 227 with rounds of 76-77-74. Freshman Jóhanna Lúðvíksdóttir (Reykjavik, Iceland/Commercial College of Iceland) also shot 74 on Sunday for the second straight day to earn a Top 10 finish as she tied for ninth at 14-over 230.
 
"Sofia's finish just goes to the work ethic she has," Kester said. "She has worked hard all the way to the end [of her career] as a senior.  It showed in the last few events and I'm super happy for her to close out her career that way. Today, she kept it in the fairway, made a lot of up and downs and saved par from some tough places.
 
"The first MAC champ is always the toughest for the freshmen because you don't know what to expect but after that first round, Jo played well these last few days. This is just the start for her, so it was great to see her end on this type of tournament."
 
The NCAA Golf Selection Show will air on Wednesday, April 27 at 3 p.m. (CT) on The Golf Channel. Ly will play in one of the six NCAA Women's Golf Regionals, which will be played May 9-11.
 
-- NIU --