Bella McCauley is feeling “really good” on the course right now, and it’s showing in the results. A week after placing third in the Boilermaker Classic, the Gophers junior finished in a tie for fourth at the ANNIKA Intercollegiate after carding a final-round 71 Wednesday at The Royal Club in Lake Elmo.
“It’s really a day-to-day basis, though. It just comes and goes. Some days it’ll feel really good, and some days it won’t,” said McCauley, who was 5-under-par for the tourney after rounds of 67, 73 and 71. “So, honestly, I’m just playing it on a day-to-day basis, but I’ve been really happy with the past two weeks. It’s been a lot of fun golf and it’s been a great team dynamic this year.”
Part of that team dynamic is a sibling reunion. Bella’s sister, Reese, is a freshman with the Gophers. The Simley siblings are back together and helping drive team success.
Reese shot three straight rounds of 74 to finish at 6-over and in a tie for 34th at the ANNIKA, one of the most difficult fields in women’s college golf. She’s adjusting to college golf, the balance of academics and athletics and the additional travel.
“I think having both is a little bit more of a challenge,” she said. “But it hasn’t been going too bad so far. Ask me again in three weeks.”
The Gophers were 13-over par in the three-round tourney, putting them in a tie for ninth with Clemson. For reference, Clemson was one of eight teams to reach the match-play portion of the NCAA Championships in the spring.
Minnesota went shot for shot with many of the country’s top teams. It finished just six strokes back of UCLA, last season’s national runner-up. It was eight shots better than Purdue, who reached the NCAA Championships last season.
South Carolina ran away with the team title with a score of 31-under par — 27 shots better than second-place Oregon. The Gamecocks sported the tournament’s top two finishers in Hannah Darling (14 under) and Louise Rydqvist (13 under).
The Gophers appear to be entering a higher tier of teams.
“It’s so fun. I think that was a huge reason I really wanted to even come to Minnesota in the first place is I knew that we were going to be trending, and I really wanted to be a part of it,” Bella said. “There’s so many good programs out there, but I know Minnesota is just getting started and is going to be really amazing and up there with all of them, so I’m excited to be on the team that’s starting the trend. So we’re excited.”
Minnesota received a strong injection of talent this season, with Reese coming in as a freshman and Mariana Mesones — who finished in a tie for 16th at 1-over for the tournament — returning after a year away from the program. Bella said the “sky is the limit” for the Gophers.
“I’m just really excited,” Reese said. “I feel like being able to do it with my sister and stuff, too, it’s super exciting and definitely an honor to be a part of it and contribute to our team kind of going up.”
Bella is starting the season on a high note. This week marked her best performance in three tries at the ANNIKA.
“Being able to come here and play well — and obviously play at our home event with all my family watching, that was just so special,” Bella said. “The last couple years I wouldn’t even say have been that bad, but definitely not the top finish we wanted, so it was really cool to come out here and be able to pull that one out.”
“She has been playing amazing,” Reese said.
