Making Another Run

Coloradan Jessica Mason closes out senior college season with fourth-place finish at women’s NCAA Division III nationals, becoming latest local golfer with top-5 showing on college’s national stage

By Gary Baines 

The NCAA Division I ranks understandably draw the most attention when it comes to college golf and its national championships.

But this fall, when it comes to other levels of college golf, players with Colorado connections really shined.

Let’s hit upon the biggest highlights:

— Last week, Coloradan Lily Nelson, a 2022 graduate of Prairie View High School, finished third individually in the women’s NCAA Division II national tournament.

— Earlier this week, a fifth-year senior at Colorado Christian University, Lance Christensen Jr., placed second in the men’s NCAA DII nationals.

— Then on Friday came the latest in the hit parade as Jessica Mason from Westminster finished solo fourth in the women’s Division III national championship in Palm Desert, Calif.

In Mason’s case, it was her third top-12 finish at DIII nationals, after placing eighth and 12th earlier in her college career.

Mason, a former state high school champ from Holy Family, closed within a stroke of the lead when she birdied her 14th hole on Friday. But that was as close as she got as she bogeyed her 17th and finished two behind DII champ Carter Sichol of Carleton.

In wrapping up her senior season at Trinity University in Texas, Mason posted scores of 70-71-74-70 for a 3-under-par total. The 2022 Women’s Western Junior champion made six birdies and four bogeys in the final round.

Mason, who came into the event ranked No. 25 in the nation in women’s DIII, finished her college career with nine individual tournament victories.

In her last six tournaments of this season, Mason placed second, second, first, second, second and fourth.

For all the results from the women’s DIII nationals, CLICK HERE.

About the Writer: Gary Baines has covered golf in Colorado continuously since 1983. He was a sports writer at the Daily Camera newspaper in Boulder, then the sports editor there, and has written regularly for ColoradoGolf.org since 2009. The University of Colorado Evans Scholar alum was inducted into the Colorado Golf Hall of Fame in 2022. He owns and operates ColoradoGolfJournal.com