NCAA Women's Golf Championship highlights: Northwestern upsets Stanford for first title

CARLSBAD, Calif. — A national champion will be crowned this evening.

The final match of the 2025 NCAA Women's Golf Championship is set between top-ranked Stanford and No. 11 Northwestern, with the first match going off at 5:15 p.m. ET Wednesday at Omni La Costa Resort & Spa's North Course.

Northwestern during the semifinals of the Division I Women’s Golf Championship held at the Omni La Costa Resort & Spa on May 20, 2025 in Carlsbad, California.

Stanford is looking for its fourth championship while Northwestern is in search of its first.

Follow along below for live updates from the championship match at the NCAA Women's Championship:

NCAA Women's Golf Championship live leaderboard

Northwestern wins first title

Dianna Lee sinks a clutch 5 footer for birdie on the 18th to win her match 1 up and secure the championship.

Northwestern takes 1 up lead to 18

Dianna Lee is 1 up on Andrea Revuelta heading to the 18th hole. The national title on the line.

Stanford ties match

Kelly Xu beats Elise Lee 1 up, and it comes down to the last match, where Dianna Lee is 1 up on Andrea Revuelta with both players in the 17th fairway.

Stanford gains momentum

All of the momentum is with Stanford. Kelly Xu is 1 up with one to play in the fourth match, and Andrea Revuelta won Nos. 14-15 to get within one. Northwestern's Dianna Lee is 1 up with two to play in the anchor, and possibly deciding, match.

Revuelta had a chance to tie the match on the 16th hole but missed a 4 footer for par.

Kelly Xu ties fourth match

Stanford has tied the fourth match after Kelly Xu's aggressive tee shot on the par-3 16th results in a birdie. However, Dianna Lee remains 2 up in the anchor match with four holes to play.

Lauryn Nguyen clutch for Northwestern

And like that, it's 2-1 Northwestern. Lauryn Nguyen birdies the 18th hole to beat Paula Martin Sampedro. Northwestern is closing in on a national title.

Northwestern gets first point

The Wildcats are on the board. Hsin Tai Lin beats Meja Ortengren 3 and 2, and Northwestern is even closer to pulling off the upset.

Two matches are tied, and Northwestern is 3 up with five to go in the anchor match.

Paula Martin Sampedro ties match going to 18

What a comeback from the Stanford sophomore. She wins 16 and 17 and the next person to win a hole wins the match.

Hard to win consecutive titles

Differences between stroke and match play

Stanford gets first point on the board

Megha Ganne beats Ashley Yun 5 and 4, and the first match is in the books. However, there's a lot of purple on the leaderboard behind, with Northwestern leading in three of the final four matches and tied in the other. The Wildcats are creeping closer to pulling off a big upset.

Northwestern in position for upset

As all the groups make the turn, Northwestern leads in three of the five matches. Megha Ganne is 5 up thru 12 for Stanford in the first match and close to closing it out, but all of the other matches are still for the taking, but Northwestern has the advantage.

Anchor matches looking to be pivotal

There's plenty of time for things to change, but as it stands, Stanford has a decisive advantage at the turn in the first match while Northwestern leads 2 up in the second and third matches.

However, the last two on the course remain tied, and whoever takes a lead and is able to close those could help their team win a national championship.

Anything can happen in match play, and the longer Northwestern can hang around, the bigger the chance gets to pull off the upset.

Northwestern leads in two matches

Lauryn Nguyen and Hsin Tai Lin have each taken leads in their matches for Northwestern. Nguyen is 1 up against Paula Martin Sampedro thru 6, and Lin is 2 up against Meja Ortengren thru 5. Stanford's Megha Ganne is 4 up thru 7.

The last two matches remain tied. Who will be able to separate as groups near the back nine?

First tee scenes

Megha Ganne wins first hole for Stanford

That didn't take long. The first point is won on the first hole, as Megha Ganne goes 1 up thru 1 in her match against Northwestern's Ashley Yun, making a par to secure the win.

Pick to win

Stanford was my pick before the championship (shocker!), and I am not changing it now. I think Northwestern has had a great week, surprising many with its run into the championship match.

The Wildcats will have to get some early momentum and ride it to the finish if they want to pull off the upset. Otherwise, the Cardinal will go back-to-back.

NCAA Women's Golf Championship championship pairings

All times ET, first tee start

No. 1 Stanford vs. No. 3 Northwestern

Championship matches

• Megha Ganne vs. Ashley Yun, 5:25 p.m., 1st tee
• Paula Martin Sampedro vs. Lauryn Nguyen, 5:35 p.m.
• Meja Ortengren vs. Hsin Tai Lin, 5:45 p.m.
• Kelly Xu vs. Elise Lee, 5:55 p.m.
• Andrea Revuelta vs. Dianna Lee, 6:05 p.m.

NCAA Women's Golf Championship predictions, expert picks

Golfweek's college golf expert Cameron Jourdan and senior writer Beth Ann Nichols made predictions for the championship. You can see their entire selections here.

How many teams made match play at NCAA Women's Golf Championship?

Eight. After Monday's final round of stroke play, the top eight teams advance to match play, which begins Tuesday morning with the quarterfinals.

NCAA Women's Golf Championship format

Finals play for both championships consists of three days of stroke play on Friday through Sunday (54 holes), after which the top-15 teams and nine individuals not on an advancing team will be determined. That is followed by a final day of 18 holes of stroke play (Monday) to determine the top eight teams that will advance to match play as well as the 72-hole individual champion. The team national champion will be determined by a match-play format that will consist of quarterfinals and semifinals conducted on Tuesday, followed by the finals on Wednesday.

NCAA Women's Golf Championship TV information

Wednesday, May 21

Live coverage - 6-10 p.m.

NCAA Women's Golf Championship tickets