COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – San Diego State's Sara Kjellker has been named Mountain West Women's Golfer of the Month for a trio of outstanding performances in September. With her award, the Aztec junior collected the third conference monthly/weekly honor of her career.
A native of Hollviken, Sweden, Kjellker posted a team-best 71.44 scoring average in nine rounds, logging three straight top-eight individual finishes while helping SDSU to a trio of top-five team placements.
At the season-opening Branch Law Firm/Dick McGuire Invitational in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Kjellker tied for eighth out of 86 competitors with a 3-under-par 213, featuring cards of 3-under 69 in the first and third rounds. She bested 28 Mountain West golfers in the field, tying only teammate Gioia Carpinelli for the top spot amongst conference players, as the Scarlet and Black tied took fifth out of 15 squads.
Kjellker also tied for fourth out of 96 individuals at the Golfweek Conference Challenge outside of Vail, Colorado, where she shot a career-best 7-under 209, highlighted by a season-low 68 in round two. Additionally, she led the field in par-5 scoring with a 4.33 average (-8) and tied for the tournament lead with 16 birdies, lifting the Aztecs to a fifth-place tie in the standings.
A two-time all-conference selection, Kjellker wrapped up her brilliant month in Portland, Oregon, by tying for seventh at the Molly Murphy Crowley Collegiate with a 5-over 221 in a field where only three golfers broke par for the week. She ranked second for the meet with a 2.93 scoring average (-1) on par-3 holes, propelling the Aztecs to a solid fourth-place finish in a tournament where eight teams were ranked among the Golfweek Top 60.
Entering the week, Kjellker has garnered a No. 38 individual ranking, while SDSU has moved into the 27th spot as a team. For the season, she leads the Aztecs with six rounds below par, including three in the 60s.
Kjellker and her San Diego State teammates will return to the fairways this weekend for the Stanford Intercollegiate, Oct. 11-13, in Stanford, California.