MADISON, Wis. — Freshman Emma Zheng of Auckland, New Zealand, made history in her collegiate debut, becoming the first freshman in Iowa State history to win a season opener while leading ISU to a team victory at the Badger Invitational Tuesday.
Zheng finished the tournament at 7-under-par with rounds of 72, 69, and 68 to capture the individual title. The freshman posted rounds in the 60s in her final two rounds and carded her first career eagle on the final day. She tied for the lowest score on par 4s
at 2-under, tied for third-lowest on par 5s at 5-under, and tied for the fifth-most birdies in the field with 11.
Iowa State claimed the team title with a 54-hole score of 7-under 857 (283-289-285), holding off a late rally from Northwestern to win by four strokes. The 857 total ties for the 15th-lowest 54-hole score in program history. The win marks Iowa State’s first team victory of the season and its fifth since the start of 2026, setting a program record for the most victories in a single calendar year.
Two other Cyclones finished inside the top 10 to help secure the team victory. Junior Nichakorn Pinprayoon tied for fifth place at even-par, securing her eighth career top-five finish. Pinprayoon crossed the 250-career birdie threshold with her final birdie of the tournament, finished tied for fifth in total birdies with 11, and tied for top-10 honors in par-3 scoring at even-par.
Junior Alexandra Vidal shot a final-round 69 — her fifth career round under 70 — to jump 17 spots into a tie for eighth at 1-over par, establishing a career-best finish. Vidal matched Zheng for the tournament lead in par-4 scoring at 2-under and carded 10 birdies over three days.
Eastern Michigan transfer Krittiya Thanintorndamrongdej recorded her best career finish, tying for 12th at 2-over par. She opened with a career-best round of 71, set a career-low 54-hole score of 218, tied for seventh in par-5 scoring at 4.87, and collected seven birdies.
Junior Isabella Yan recorded her ninth career top-25 finish, tying for 24th at 6-over par. Yan tied for third in par-5 scoring average (4.67) and tallied the second-most pars in the field with 39. Freshman Aelisa Twiltermsup tied for 65th competing as an individual in her collegiate debut, totaling five birdies across three rounds.
As a team, Iowa State finished in the top five of every statistical category. The Cyclonitas recorded the tournament’s lowest par-4 scoring average (4.07) and the most pars (181), while placing second in par-5 scoring (4.81) and total birdies (44).
Iowa State returns to competition Friday at the Schooner Fall Classic in Norman, Oklahoma. Competition concludes Monday.
Iowa State Scorecard
1 – Emma Zheng – 72-69-68 = 209 (-7)
T5 – Nichakorn Pinprayoon – 68-72-76 = 216 (E)
T8 – Alexandra Vidal – 72-76-69 = 217 (+1)
T12 – Krittiya Thanintorndamrongdej – 71-75-72 = 218 (+2)
T24 – Isabella Yan – 73-73-76 = 222 (+6)
Iowa State Individual Scorecard
T65 – Aelisa Twiltermsup – 79-76-77 = 232 (+16)
