The University of Wyoming Cowgirls golf team accepted a bid on May 1 to compete in the Women’s National Golf Invitational, marking the program’s first-ever postseason appearance. The event will take place from May 15-17 at the Ak-Chin Southern Dunes Golf Club in Maricopa, Arizona.
This development is significant for the Cowgirls, who recently finished fourth in the Mountain West Championships. The invitation reflects their growth and performance this season as they join a field of ten teams including Bowling Green State, Bradley, Coastal Carolina, Denver, Lipscomb, Mercer, Missouri State, Rutgers and Stetson.
“I’m just so very proud of this group and the program as a whole. This was a goal of ours at the beginning of the season to play in the postseason,” Wyoming head coach Josey Stender said. “(Assistant) Coach Blake (Isakson) and I knew we had the pieces to accomplish it.”
Earlier this year, Wyoming hosted its own tournament at Ak-Chin Southern Dunes where Kiley Reisner tied for fourth individually and set a new school record with her score of 207 over three rounds. “The familiarity with the course is going to be huge for us,” Stender said. “It will be a little different set up, and I’m sure the course has firmed up with the heat, so it may play different.” Reisner also led Wyoming to its best finish ever at conference championships by placing second overall.
The team’s lineup for NGI includes both Reisner sisters—Kiley and Kira—alongside Meghan Vogt, Elle Higgins and Emerson Purcell; Ellie Barry will travel as an alternate. Vogt finished tied for fourteenth at conference championships while Higgins tied for seventeenth.
Stender said: “When you chip away at all the little things and then you get an invite like this, it really validates what your process has been. I think our girls genuinely believe in each other and themselves and that’s a dangerous combination.”
