SPRINGFIELD, Ohio—Jane Hopkinson-Wood closed out a four-year career for the ages on Friday afternoon with a third place finish at the 2018 NCAA Women's Golf Championship. Hopkinson-Wood finished +15 for the tournament, after carding rounds of 75-81-76-75. Finishing four strokes off the lead, the third place finish at the championship served as Hopkinson-Wood's highest finish in her career at Wittenberg.
Earlier in the week, the Pennsylvania native became Wittenberg's first four-time first-team All-American after landing on the 2017-18 WGCA First-Team on Wednesday. Hopkinson-Wood, a senior who ranks third in GolfStat's computer player rankings, earned the first of six at-large bids into the 2018 NCAA Championships, finishing four strokes out of first place, and a stroke out of second place.
The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Athenas won the first Division III national championship in the history of their women's golf program Friday, and did so in dramatic fashion at Mission Inn Resort and Club in Howey-in-the-Hills, Florida. They defeated Williams on a two-hole playoff, tying with the Ephs on the first hole before defeating them by one stroke on the second. The two teams fired scores of 93-over-par 1261 over the course of the four rounds.
Prior to the championships, Hopkinson-Wood won overall medalist at the NCAC championship tournament for the second time in her career after firing a two-over par 54-hole score of 224 (72-72-80).
Hopkinson-Wood's NCAC Medalist Honor brings her grand total to 15 in her incredible Tiger career, once again leading the charge for her squad this season with five total individual titles, winning medalist honors at Denison's Lynn Schweizer Invitational, DePauw's Dan Quayle Collegiate Classic, Wittenberg's own Pat Clouse Invitational, the NCAC Fall Preview event at Westbrook C.C. and finally earning the top prize at OWU's Laura Bump Invitational this spring.
Hopkinson-Wood also earned NCAC Player of the Year honors after putting together a senior season for the ages in Springfield. At the conference level, Hopkinson-Wood most recently earned her 20th NCAC Player of the Week Honors. Hopkinson-Wood also, won the NCAC's individual championship in 2016
2018 marks the fourth-straight appearance for Hopkinson-Wood at the NCAA championships. The Pottstown, PA native has improved her overall finish each season, highlighted by a fourth-place finish (297) last year that included her career best single round at the Championships when she fired a 69 in round two.
George Fox finished third as a team at 104-over 1272, coming in 11 strokes behind the tie for first. New York University finished fourth at 110-over 1278 and Carnegie Mellon came in at 118-over 1286. Carleton, Whitman, Methodist, Berry, DePauw and Washington (Missouri) rounded out the top 10, with DePauw and Washington coming in tied for 10th.
The 2018 NCAA Division III Women's Golf Championship is being co-hosted by Oglethorpe University and the Central Florida Sports Commission, marking the third time that the pair has collaborated to host the tournament at Mission Inn in the last five years.