Arkansas' Historic Run Ends in NCAA Championship Semifinals

CARLSBAD, Calif. – The Arkansas women’s golf team made history on Tuesday morning with the program’s first match play win at the NCAA Championship since the format was introduced in 2015.

The 3-seed Hogs dominated to a 5-0 victory over 6-seed Oklahoma State and advanced to the semifinals for the first time in program history.

Arkansas clinched the first three points on holes 16 (No. 7) and 17 (No. 8). Senior Reagan Zibilski put the Hogs on the board first with a 3&2 win over Ellie Bushnell on the seventh green with a five-foot putt to remain 3 up with two holes to play.

Junior Abbey Schutte, who led by as many as four halfway through her match, slipped to a one-hole lead by the fifteenth hole (No. 6). Her opponent, Summer Lee, bogeyed Nos. 7 and 8 and conceded the match after Schutte’s long putt for birdie came within two feet of the hole. The win was Schutte’s second in match play at the NCAA Championship; she dominated to a 4&3 victory against Northwestern in 2025.

Freshman Sara Brentcheneff entered the seventh hole 3UP and just needed a tie to slam the door on the Cowgirls. She and her opponent, Yu-Chu Chen, both made bogey on the hardest hole on the course.

Junior Maria Jose Marin made it to No. 6 (hole fifteen) 2UP and sophomore Natalie Blonien led by one on her fourteenth hole (No. 5) before Oklahoma State conceded the remaining matches.

The Hogs had around two hours before teeing off in the semifinals against 2-seed USC, which defeated 7-seed Duke, 3-2, in the quarterfinals.

Arkansas’ momentum from the morning did not carry over into the afternoon round as the Trojans jumped out to early leads in three of five matches. Zibilski, Schutte and Blonien each got down by multiple holes.

Brentcheneff never let her match against Baily Shoemaker get out of hand despite not leading until the seventeenth and final hole. She was 1 down for eight holes and tied for eight holes. Her two match play wins are the most by an Arkansas freshman at the NCAA Championship and tied with Marin and Schutte for the most all-time.

Marin never trailed in her match against Kylie Chong; her match finished on No. 15 when both players tied the hole with pars.

USC will face No. 1 seed Stanford in the championship match on Tuesday afternoon. The Cardinal defeated No. 8 seed Pepperdine 5-0 in the quarterfinals and No. 5 seed Eastern Michigan 5-0 in the semifinals.

Quarterfinal Results – Arkansas def. Oklahoma State 5-0

Reagan Zibilski 3&2 vs. Ellie Bushnell
Abbey Schutte 3&1 vs. Summer Lee
Sara Brentcheneff 3&2 vs. Yu-Chu Chen
Maria Jose Marin 2UP vs. Marta Silchenko
Natalie Blonien 1UP vs. Tarapath Panya

Semifinal Results – USC def. Arkansas 3-2

Jasmine Koo 3&2 vs. Reagan Zibilski
Catherine Park 3&2 vs. Abbey Schutte
Sara Brentcheneff 1UP vs. Bailey Shoemaker
Maria Jose Marin 4&3 vs. Kylie Chong
Elise Lee 5&3 vs. Natalie Blonien

For more information on Arkansas women’s golf, follow @RazorbackWGolf on social media.