Punahou product Raya Nakao tied for fifth place at the NCAA’s North Carolina regional, shooting a final-round 69 for her best finish in her freshman season at Oregon State.

She led the field with 43 pars in the three rounds and added nine birdies. She qualified for the NCAA Championships on her own, but her whole team made it by virtue of its fifth-place finish. The Beavers made it by seven shots over Tennessee.

Nakao shot a 33 on the front and played even on the back with a bogey on 16 and a birdie on 17.

Mississippi’s Caitlyn Macnab and Rachel Kuehn of Wake Forest tied for first, five shots ahead of Nakao.

In the Las Vegas regional, Mid-Pacific’s Myah McDonald struggled with a 40 on the front nine and shot a 78 to slip to a tie for 20th despite a birdie on 16 to leave her out of the NCAA Championships.

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Jerry Campany, Star-Advertiser