GREENEVILLE, Tenn. – Clutch play down the stretch in Friday's final round allowed the UBC Thunderbirds to claim a come-from-behind victory at the 18th annual NAIA Women's Golf National Championships in Greeneville, Tenn.

UBC bested the Savannah College of Art and Design of Georgia by two shots. The Thunderbirds led by one after yesterday's third round.
 
"We're just elated and surprised," UBC head coach Chris MacDonald said. "We expected to be competing against some different teams, but then we ran up against SCAD-Savannah (Ga.), who were just courageous out there. We literally played head-to-head with them for three days. I've never been through anything like that before where it was so close the entire [tournament].

"It could've gone either way. We knew we couldn't just win this tournament on talent alone, it had to take a good game plan, and the girls just embraced it. Every shot, they just went for it."

The two teams went back and forth atop the leaderboard on the last day of play. At the halfway point today, the schools were tied but SCAD surged ahead on the back nine.
 
But UBC's top four golfers went 1-under combined on the final three holes of the Link Hills Golf and Country Club, while SCAD's top four went 7-over, allowing the T-Birds to clinch the national championship.
 
Alyssa Human (4th, Kamloops, B.C.), playing the final NAIA event of her career, may have been the difference for UBC. She recorded birdies on the 16th and 17th holes to help her team take the lead. Those birdies also allowed her to shoot 77 (4-over) on the day.  Human's total score of 17-over 309 put her in a tie for 22nd in the individual portion of the competition.
 
Kylie Barros (3rd, Edmonton) was UBC's top player today. Her birdie on 17th was also instrumental in the Thunderbirds' comeback. It allowed her to finish her round at even-par, 73 and at 5-over, 297 for the tournament. That was good enough for a fifth-place tie for the defending NAIA champion.
 
"The reason we had success this week is because we had such great depth," said Barros. "We had five strong players and each girl contributed throughout the week. It was amazing to see the girls grind out each day. Four days is a long tournament and my team mates played with such heart. We had three girls who had never played a national event and they handled the pressures so well."

"Having Alyssa back this year helped give us leadership and the experience we needed. It was nice to get her a banner during her last year, especially when we both got to experience it together two years ago."

Rookie Stephanie Wong (1st, Richmond, B.C.) had an excellent NAIA championships debut and since she was the last UBC player to finish, her par putt on the final hole made the team victory official.

Wong was the team's most consistent golfer as she was the only T-Bird to have her result count towards the UBC team score on all four days of play.  Her final round 76 (3-over) left her with a total score of 299 (7-over) and in a tie for eighth.
 
Like Human, Casara Hong (2nd, Calgary) also fired a four-over, 77 on the day. That result moved her up into a tie for 43rd place with a score of 316 (24-over) after four rounds.
 
Reagan Wilson (2nd, Calgary) carded an 81 (8-over) in the final round and completed the event in 314 strokes (22-over). She ended up sharing 38th place with four others.
 
This is UBC's second NAIA women's golf championship in three years, and the school's fourth overall, with previous victories in 2001, 2004 and 2010.
 
"The players could not have done it without the training opportunities at Shaughnessy Golf and Country Club, fitness support from Jason, Vanessa and Marc as well Keri's coaching and swing advice and Erica's amazing on course performance during the event," said MacDonald. "I know we have the best university golf staff and team in Canada and the NAIA and that's something I'm very proud of."

The UBC team will now begin preparations for the final event of the season, the Golf Canada University/College Championship May 29-June 1 at the Cordova Bay Golf Course in Victoria.