Thunderbird (W-Golf) Set to Begin Nationals in Kansas
The NMJC women's golf team competes in Round 1 of the 2025 NJCAA Women's Golf National Championship in Garden City, Kan., at Buffalo Dunes Golf Club Monday, May 12 at 10:50 a.m. CDT.
The 72-hole tournament hosted by Garden City CC runs May 12-15 and is 18 holes each day.
The T-Birds are in just their second year of the women's golf program and have made appearances at the NJCAA Women's Golf National Championship in 2024 and 2025. The team led by head coach Kendalyn Ferguson finished in fifth place last year and looks to improve on their first-year performance behind a sophomore laden squad in Year 2.
"We had a great experience at Nationals last year. Our current sophomores started this team and were ranked 4th in the nation and earned a spot in the national championship in the first year of the program," Coach Ferguson said. "The main thing is that everything was so new, and we were just young overall and lacked that experience. These ladies have gained a lot of knowledge and experience throughout their last two years, and we have had great freshman additions. With more experience comes the belief that you are doing the right thing, and you are a team that can truly compete."
This season the Thunderbirds as a team won a school record four times. The T-Birds were led individually by Olivia Heard who won three times and Hinano Kishida who won once. NMJC finished in the top 3 as a team in 11-of-12 tournaments this year and had 31 top-5 finishes individually.
The women head into the tournament in fifth place nationally behind No. 1 Daytona State, No. 2 Odessa, No. 3 Seminole State, and No. 4 Eastern Florida.
The T-Birds only two freshmen in the lineup are Giuliana Frutos and Stefany Crozier as the rest of the squad is led by sophomores Nanami Hayakawa, Wawa Booncharn, Olivia Heard, and Hinano Kishida.
"I believe these sophomores will play smart and intentional golf this week," Coach Ferguson said. "They have gained a lot of experience throughout their last two years and know how to compete to get the job done. They will just try to win each day to come out on top in the end. These ladies compete hard all year against tough competition, so I think they know they have to play intentional golf. We have two freshmen, Giuli and Stevie, that we will throw into the fold this year too so it's a nice mix of old and new at nationals."
The T-Birds will tee off at Buffalo Dunes Golf Club in Round 1 Monday, May 12 at 10:50 a.m. CDT.
Tee times are as follows, Giuliana Frutos will tee off at 10:50 a.m CDT, Nanami Hayakawa at 11 a.m. CDT, Wawa Booncharn at 11:10 a.m. CDT, Olivia Heard at 11:20 a.m. CDT, and Hinano Kishida at 11:30 a.m CDT.
Stefany Crozier is the substitute for the Thunderbirds this week. The substitute can be inserted into the Thunderbirds lineup at the start of each round due to an injury or because of performance.
Coach Ferguson believes that the Thunderbirds placement off the tee is key to their success at Buffalo Dunes GC.
"We will have to play smart off the tee to get each hole off to a good start. There can be trouble if we don't place the ball well. Overall, just play smart, simple golf to come out on top."
T-Bird fans can follow the live scoring by clicking here and for live updates follow NMJC women's golf's Instagram @nmjc_wgolf.
