UF junior golfer Paula Francisco continues to impress this season.
Francisco finished as the individual conference champion Sunday after a 8-under 202 with four birdies and just one bogey in round three of stroke play in the SEC Championships at Pelican Golf Club in Belleair.
Francisco, a Madrid native, became the first Gator to win the SEC individual title since Maria Torres in 2016 and the eighth all-time.
The win is the second of Francisco’s collegiate career and season, joining Maisie Filler (2023) as the last Gator to win multiple individual titles in a season. Francisco becomes the 14th UF golfer to claim two medalist honors in a season.
“There is always a little bit more pressure, you have to be there for your team. I knew the day was going to be hard with it getting windier and the pins were a little tougher out there,” Francisco said. “This win means everything to me. It’s something that you dream of and work for all year.”
Her performance along with a -3 round from graduate transfer Megan Propek led Florida to finish first in stroke play after finishing with a -4 round to overtake Texas and Oklahoma.
Despite earning a double-bogey on hole two, Propeck bounced back with five birdies the rest of the way to finish eighth in stroke play.
Sophomore Siuue Wu finished even on day three to put her tied for 25th next to teammate and freshman Katelyn Huber, who logged a +2 round with three bogeys on the back nine.
Elaine Widjaja rounded out the lineup for Florida with a +6 final round after going even on the prior two outings. She had a double-bogey and two bogeys on the back nine to finish 41st in stroke play.
Florida’s 831 score is the program’s lowest three-round total by score in program history at the SEC Championship, beating the previous record (842) by 11 shots in 2017, the last time UF won the conference title.
“I’m not often one who probably makes big over the top statements, but I would be lying if I said this wasn’t probably one of the proudest moments of my coaching career,” UF coach Emily Glaser said. “It’s a real confidence boost because this is a really, really tough league.”
The top-seeded Gators will face eight seed Vanderbilt at 8 a.m. Monday in the quarterfinals of match play at the SEC championships.
