Preview: #18 Lady Vols Set for NCAA Championships

Friday, May 22

University of Tennessee

NCAA Championship - Round 1

May 21, 2026 | Women's Golf

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The final tournament of a historic 2025-26 season for the No. 18 Tennessee women's golf team has arrived as the NCAA Championships are set to begin on Friday.

The tournament features a unique format, beginning with three rounds of stroke play from Friday, May 22, through Sunday, May 24. Following the conclusion of the opening 54 holes, the top 15 teams and the top nine individuals not on an advancing team will advance to a fourth stroke play round on Monday, May 25. Following the fourth and final round of stroke play, an individual national champion will be crowned, and the top eight teams will advance to the match play quarterfinals in the quest for a team national title.

Similar to the format of the SEC Championships, the match play quarterfinals and semifinals are set to be completed on the same day: Tuesday, May 26. The NCAA Championships will conclude with the match play final on Wednesday, May 27, where one team will be crowned national champions.

Live scoring throughout the entire event will be available through Scoreboard. The opening three rounds of stroke play will be streamed live by Babygrande Golf. The fourth round of stroke play and the entirety of the match play portion of the tournament will be broadcast live on the Golf Channel under the following schedule:

Monday, May 25 – 2:30 to 6:30 p.m. Pacific time (5:30 to 9:30 p.m. Eastern time)
Tuesday, May 26 – 10 a.m. to 12:30 Pacific time (1 to 3:30 p.m. Eastern time)
Tuesday, May 26 – 3 to 7 p.m. Pacific time (6 to 10 p.m. Eastern time)
Wednesday, May 27 – 3 to 7 p.m. Pacific time (6 to 10 p.m. Eastern time)

For the third consecutive season, Omni La Costa's North Course, in Carlsbad, California, will play host to both the men's and women's NCAA Championships. The par-72 6,373-yard course designed by Gil Hanse has hosted 37 PGA Tour events with fields featuring the likes of Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Phil Mickelson, and Gary Player.

No stranger to drama, Tennessee advanced to the NCAA Championships through a playoff victory over Tulsa at the Waco Regional. The Lady Vols completed a seven-stroke comeback in round three to force a sudden death playoff in which Tennessee won hole No. 1 by three strokes. Beyond advancing in the NCAA tournament, the Lady Vols have garnered a strong list of accomplishments in the 2025-26 season, including the program's first ever SEC Championship title and a program record four team victories.

With a dramatic comeback effort at the Waco Regional, the Lady Vols secured their second consecutive NCAA Championship appearance and the 16^th in program history. In 2025 at Omni La Costa, Tennessee played into the fourth round of stroke play, notching an impressive 13^th place finish. The Lady Vols recorded their best NCAA Championship finish in both 2015 and 2000, when they closed in fifth place. Both results were before the NCAA adopted the match play format to determine the team champion.

Tennessee Lineup
Kyra Van Kan
The All-SEC Second Team selection was Tennessee's best performer at the Waco Regional, tying for eighth place with a 3-under-par performance and draining a dagger birdie putt on the playoff hole. Van Kan earned her first collegiate win at the Paradise Invitational and February and has amassed 17 rounds of par or better en route to a 71.10 scoring average this season.

Madison Messimer
An All-SEC First Team honoree and the SEC Freshman of the Year, Messimer has been key to Tennessee's success all season. She earned individual runner up honors at the SEC Championships, where she shot 6-under-par, and claimed victory at the Chris Banister Golf Classic in March. Messimer is on track to set a new program record for single season scoring average, currently at 70.88, and has matched the program record for rounds of par or better in a season with 19.

Manassanan Chotikabhukkana
The lone senior in Tennessee's lineup, Chotikabhukkana was vital to advancing at the Waco Regional. She posted back-to-back 1-under-par rounds of 69 to close the event, posting four birdies on her final six holes of round three. Most notably, Chotikabhukkana drained a near 30-foot birdie putt on hole No. 18 to complete the Lady Vol comeback.

Sophie Christopher
A strong spring for Christopher culminated in a top 15 individual finish at the Waco Regional. The sophomore closed the event at 1-over-par after opening with two consecutive even-par rounds of 70. Additionally, Christopher earned her first collegiate win at the Georgia State Invitational, shooting 5-under-par, and tallied a dominant 6&5 win in the match play final of the SEC Championships.

Sofie Engesaeth
The junior has earned a reputation as a match play specialist for the Lady Vols after going 3-0 in her matches at the SEC Championships and proving vital to clinching the first conference championship in program history. Engesaeth will begin the NCAA Championships in the Lady Vols' lineup after competing in the final two rounds of the Waco Regional.

Kaopan Thapasit (sub)
Another prolific freshman for Tennessee, Thapasit will begin the NCAA Championships as a substitute option. In the 2025-26 season, she has tallied 12 rounds of par or better, five top 25 finishes, and a 72.90 scoring average.

Teams
Arizona State
Arkansas
Auburn
Baylor
Duke
Eastern Michigan
Florida
Florida State
Houston
Iowa State
Kentucky
LSU
Michigan State
Missouri
North Carolina
Northwestern
Ohio State
Oklahoma State
Ole Miss
Oregon State
Pepperdine
SMU
Stanford
Tennessee
Texas
Texas A&M
Texas Tech
USC
Virginia
Wake Forest

Individuals
Isabella McCauley – Minnesota
Thanana Kotchasanmanee – Princeton
Sheridan Clancy – Indiana
Emma Bunch – New Mexico State
Johanna Sjursen – ULM
Kirstin Angosta – TCU