HOT SPRINGS, Ark. (October 19, 2026) – One day after making an eagle in her collegiate debut, true freshman Ella Busby took it to another level.
Busby's second collegiate round resulted in a two-under day, as she penciled in a 70 to lead the University of North Alabama in the second round of the Diamante Intercollegiate hosted by Little Rock in Hot Springs, Ark. This marks the second-lowest round by a Lion in their program debut in program history behind the 69 recorded by Jackie Klemm in 2022 in Hoover, Ala.
Busby started two-over through the first nine holes on the back-nine, then recorded four birdies and five pars on the front nine to bring her score to under par. Two of her birdies came on par-three holes, two came on par-fives and the other came on a par-four hole 1.
As a team, the Lions moved up three spots on the leaderboard with three others shooting a 76 or better for round two. As a unit, the Lions recorded 15 birdies as compared to 10 yesterday.
True freshman Celia Martinez Gaarcia moved into the top 40 of the field of over 100 golfers, posting a 73 (+1) to move up one spot from yesterday. Junior Olivia Whittle, who led the team yesterday with a career-best 71, finished with a 76 (+4) today to keep her spot in the top half of the field.
Redshirt senior Kerigan Klauber had a 75 (+3) to keep her card steady. She is also in the top half of the field, tied for 55th with a two-day score of +4. Freshman Annalee Regan closed the second round with an 81 in just her second career tournament.
The Lions are 14th place of 20 teams in a tight field, sitting just 11 strokes outside the top-10 and 14 away from the top-six. Sam Houston State leads the way at -20 for two rounds, while Arkansas State (-7), ULM (-5), Central Arkansas (-4) and Cal Baptist (-4) round out the top five.
UNA is just one stroke back of Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, but the Lions are leading UNC Asheville, Houston Christian, Memphis, East Texas A&M, fellow United Athletic Conference member UT Arlington and last place Stephen F. Austin.
"Gritty team round," said UNA head coach Neil Self. "Everyone really fought for it out there today and turned it into a solid total. It was outstanding for Ella to do what she did in only her second college round."
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