Van Kan’s Big Day Fuels #18 Lady Vols in SEC Championship Second Round

Saturday, April 18

University of Tennessee

SEC Championship - Round 2

Photo by: Dan Lavin

Van Kan’s Big Day Fuels #18 Lady Vols in SEC Championship Second Round

April 18, 2026 | Women's Golf

Results

BELLEAIR, Fla. – The No. 18 Tennessee women's golf team had a resurgent second round at the SEC Championship on Saturday.

The Lady Vols posted a 5-under-par 275 to mark a nine-stroke improvement from Friday's opening round performance. At 1-under-par through 36 holes, Tennessee is tied for eighth place alongside No. 8 Auburn and No. 16 Mississippi State.

At the conclusion of round three of stroke play on Sunday, the top eight teams will advance to the match play quarterfinals, set for Monday. Jumping from tenth place to a tie for eighth place during round two, the Lady Vols significantly aided their chances of advancing.

"Our team showed a lot of grit today", head coach Diana Cantu said after the round. "We had to come out with some fight today to put ourselves in a better position to advance to match play and we did just that."

Kyra Van Kan was key to Tennessee's success on Saturday, matching the best round by any golfer in the tournament so far with a 5-under-par 65. The sophomore totaled six birdies on the day before suffering her only bogey of the round on hole No. 17. Improving to 1-under-par overall, Van Kan was the day's biggest riser on the individual leader board, climbing 39 spots to a tie for 18^th place.

"Kyra was huge for us today," Cantu said. "I fully expected her to deliver for us today because that's the kind of golfer she is. She proves her ability every time we're on the course."

Another big riser for the Lady Vols in round two was Sophie Christopher, who carded a 3-under-par 67 in round two. The Tennessee native went 3-under-par on the back nine and was the only Lady Vol to birdie hole No. 18. Christopher rose 28 spots individually to a tie for 29^th place at 1-over-par.

Madison Messimer earned Tennessee's third round of the day under par, closing with a 1-under-par 69. After tallying four birdies on Saturday, the freshman remains the highest Lady Vol on the individual leader board. She is tied for ninth place at 3-under-par, five strokes behind the individual leader with 18 holes to play.

Manassanan Chotikabhukkana posted the final countable score of the round for Tennessee. The senior from Thailand shot a 4-over-par 74, falling to 6-over-par overall and tied for 58^th place through 36 holes.

The Lady Vols will complete third and final round of stroke play at the SEC Championship on Sunday, hoping to advance to the match play quarterfinals on Monday. Tennessee's round three tee times will begin at 8:50 a.m. EST on hole No. 1.

SEC Championship Standings (Round Two)
1. Texas (-10)
2. Oklahoma (-8)
3. Vanderbilt (-6)
4. Florida (-5)
T-5. Ole Miss (-4)
T-5. Arkansas (-4)
7. Texas A&M (-3)
T-8. Tennessee (-1)
T-8. Mississippi State (-1)
T-8. Auburn (-1)
11. South Carolina (+4)
12. Missouri (+7)
13. Kentucky (+17)
14. LSU (+18)
15. Georgia (+26)
16. Alabama (+31)

Tennessee Results (Round Two)
T-9. Madison Messimer: 68-69 = 137 (-3)
T-18. Kyra Van Kan: 74-65 = 139 (-1)
T-29. Sophie Christopher: 74-67 = 141 (+1)
T-54. Kaopan Thapasit: 70-75 = 145 (+5)
T-58. Manassanan Chotikabhukkana: 72-74 = 146 (+6)