COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho – All day long, the leaderboard behind Lauren Lee kept changing.
 
But once Lee took over the top spot on that leaderboard after just four holes, her position never changed.
 
The Seattle Pacific sophomore put together a solid front nine to take a two-shot lead at the turn, stretched it to as many as three shots early on the back nine, then hung on down the windy, rainy stretch to win the Great Northwest Athletic Conference women's golf championship by one shot on Wednesday afternoon.
 
ROUND 3 IN A NUTSHELL
Lee carded a third-round score of 5-over-par 77 on the 5,802-yard layout at The Coeur d'Alene Resort, giving her a three-round total of 225. That was one ahead of Simon Fraser's Izzy Feguson, who closed with a 1-over 73 and a final total of 226. Simon's Dana Smith was one shot further back at 227.
 
SPU junior Zoe Garcia, who vaulted up the board with her 73 on Tuesday, was part of a two-way tie for fourth at 228 after shooting 79 on Wednesday. A model of consistency all three days, Garcia carded 13 pars in the final round, with a stretch of five in a row on the front nine and six straight on the back nine.
 
Seattle Pacific sophomore Natalie Eklund finished in a tie for 16th at 242. Stella Johnson, a freshman, was 21st at 248. Sophomore Anika Schau, who was not able to play Tuesday's second round because of an illness, returned to the course on Wednesday and carded an 83 to go along with her 90 on Monday.
 
The Falcons, in just their second year as a program, finished second in the team standings behind four-time champion Simon Fraser. They totaled 321 for their top four scores on Wednesday, giving them a three-round total of 938. That was six shots better than Western Washington's 944. The Red Leafs won convincingly with a 913.
 
SPEAKING OF THE FALCONS: COACH TYLER COPP
"That's a huge accomplishment for Lauren. She was steady all day and got off to a great start," Copp said. "With how bad the weather was, pars were going to win this thing on the tougher holes. Then rallying for a bogey on some of the tougher ones was going to be enough." 

Everyone knew the weather was not going to be pleasant on Wednesday.
 
"It was probably as bad as it could have been. The wind was gusting, especially off the lake, and it rained all day," Copp said. "It got worse was we got to the back nine, and it just continued on. Thankfully, the course was playable so we could get the round in. It was 20-mile-per-hour winds and it rained nonstop."
 
As thrilled as he was for Lee, Copp was just as happy with how Garcia played.
 
"The cool thing about Zoe is she has really improved how she handles and mistake and she moves on," he said. "She has a lot of skill and talent. Her distance off the tee and her distance in general is a big strength of hers, and she's able to use that to her advantage. Her short game was phenomenal three days in a row.:
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
--Starting on Hole 10, Lee needed just two holes to pull into a first-place tie. SPU's Lee went par-par; Western's Lauren F. Lee went bogey-bogey. They both parred the third hole to stay even, then the Falcon sophomore parred the fourth hole while Western's Lee – playing in the same threesome – had a double-bogey.
--The front nine for Seattle Pacific's Lee included six pars, two birdies and one bogey for a 1-under 36 and a 184 at the turn. That was two ahead of Simon Fraser's Smith (also in the threesome with the two Lees) and Kelsie Inouye of Saint Martin's. Western's Lee was three back at 187.
--All four of them started the back nine from Hole 1, making par-5 on the 500-yarder and bogey-5 on the next hole, a 375-yarder.
--Things didn't get any easier for them, or for any of the others on the course as the wind picked up and the rain kept falling. SPU's Lee maintained a two-shot lead through 15. Then a double bogey-6 on the 345-yard No. 7 hole left her and Smith deadlocked at 8-over with two holes left. Their closest challengers were two shots further back.
--Lee came up big on the penultimate hole, making par-4 on the 387-yarder, getting up and down with a chip and a putt. Smith had a double bogey-6.
--Now up by two heading toward the 541-yard, par-5 closing hole (the longest hole on the course), Lee got onto the green in four. She putted to within an inch or so and tapped in for the title.
 
QUOTABLE: LAUREN LEE
"It was rough. I started off pretty strong and was making some really good sots and making some up-and-downs," Lee said. "Once the wind got heaver, I started struggling. But I was still making the shots that mattered and was making the putts."

For the most part, Lee kept her eyes on the course and off the leaderboard.
 
"I had no idea – I thought I was way behind," she said. "I was just focusing on how do I stay consistent through the last few holes and stay strong. Around the last hole, I kind of figured I was in the lead."
 
She figured she had a chance to contend for the title, but tried not to think about that.
 
"It definitely crossed my mind. But the more I thought about it, I got more nervous," she said. "It was just another day, just play the golf that I know. I don't need to fight for it, just play my game and it will all work out."
 
 
FALCONS TAKE FLIGHT AS A TEAM
In their inaugural GNAC Tournament last spring, the Falcons finished sixth out of the six teams.
 
After Monday's first round with a program-record 317 for its top four individual scores, SPU was fifth. With another record total of 303 on Tuesday, The Falcons moved up to third.
 
Then on Wednesday, they went back and forth with Western Washington between second and third most of the day. At one point late in the round, Seattle Pacific was eight shots behind the Vikings, then came storming back to finish six shots ahead for second place.
 
"Second place in our second year is pretty incredible," Copp said. "It shows how bought-in the team has been. With the seven players we signed in Year 1, everyone was really dedicated. Then to add three players and have them fit right in, it was a mixture of all their good character.
 
"We try to emphasize the team aspects a lot," he added. "To see the joy on their faces when we finished second and beat a few teams who were ahead of us after Day 1 was really cool."
 
BEYOND THE SCORECARD
--Lee tied for 10th last year as a freshman when she played for Western Washington, nine shots behind winner Meera Minhas of Simon Fraser.
--Garcia (photo right) placed 21st last year. Eklund tied for 18th and Schau tied for 24th.
--Lee finished tied with Simon Fraser's Izzy Ferguson for the best average score on par-4 holes at 4.21.
--Garcia was tied with Simon's Dana Smith for the best average score on par-3s with a 3.07.
--Lee's 10 birdies led the tournament. That was one more than Kelsie Inouye of Saint Martin's.
--Garcia's 40 pars also led the tournament, two ahead of Ferguson.
--Garcia also had by far the fewest bogeys with just seven. The next fewest was 10.
 
UP NEXT
The committee that determines qualifiers for the regional tournament will meet on Friday to make those selections.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S GOLF
GNAC Championships
Wednesday, April 22, 2026
The Coeur d'Alene Resort / Par-72 / 5,802 yards
 
Final team standings – 1, Simon Fraser 913; 2, Seattle Pacific 938; 3, Western Washington 944; 4, Montana State Billings 945; 5, Saint Martin's 963; 6, Northwest Nazarene 993.
 
Top 10 – 1, Lauren Lee (SPU) 73-75-77—225; 2, Izzy Ferguson (Simon) 76-77-73—226; 3, Dana Smith (Simon) 76-73-78—227; T4, Zoe Garcia (SPU) 76-73-79—228 and Meera Minhas (Simon) 73-78-77—228; T6, Lauren F. Lee (WWU) 72-74-83—229 and Kelsie Inouye (StM) 70-79-80—229; 8, Ella Tannenberger (MSUB) 78-76-79—232; 9, Carly Ikel (WWU) 78-74-81—233; 10, Cadence Ko (Simon) 77-77-80—234.
 
Other SPU – T16, Natalie Eklund 83-73-86—242; 21, Stella Johnson 82-82-84—248; Anika Schau 90-X-81—171.
 
 
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