– María Hernández took advantage of Jennifer Song's double bogey on the final hole to complete her comeback

– Azahara Muñoz, fourth, and Carlota Ciganda, eleventh, completed the best Spanish performance in the United States

María Hernández has written a new glorious page in the history of Spanish golf by winning in agonizing fashion at the United States National Collegiate Final, which annually brings together many of the best amateur players in the world and which on this occasion featured six Spanish golfers.

In her final year at Purdue University, María Hernández from Navarre achieved her most prestigious victory since arriving in the United States. She began the final round two strokes behind American Jennifer Song, allowing her to dream of a title that only one other Spaniard, Azahara Muñoz, had previously won.

Maria Hernandez finished her round with a 71 (1 under par; four birdies and three bogeys) on the challenging Caves Valley Golf Club course in Maryland, and simply waited to see what the player from Southern California would do. It was a duel between two.

Jennifer Song, who was playing at even par on the 18th tee, felt the pressure of the moment and signed an untimely double bogey that turned the standings upside down and gave the victory to Maria Hernandez, a fair reward for a player who has won 13 tournaments in the US Collegiate League.

The Spanish team's strong performance was capped off by the good showings of the other five golfers competing in Maryland. Azahara Muñoz – last year's winner in Albuquerque – Carlota Ciganda, Belén Mozo, and Marta Silva all finished in the top 15 after the first 54 holes. It was time, then, to finish the job on the final day.

Azahara Muñoz and Carlota Ciganda did it, climbing to fourth and eleventh position respectively, but also leading their team, Arizona State, to victory ahead of UCLA and Southern California, which had Belén Mozo in its ranks.

The Cádiz native, like Marta Silva, had her worst day of the competition and dropped a few places, although both still finished in the top 25, a valuable result given the level of the tournament. This same criterion also applies to Carolina Andrade's performance in Caves Valley, where Spanish golf enjoyed another triumphant day thousands of kilometers away.

INDIVIDUAL CLASSIFICATION
1.- María Hernández (Purdue) 289 (74+72+72+71)
2.- Jennifer Song (Southern California) 290 (72+73+71+74)
4.- Azahara Muñoz (Arizona State) 293 (78+71+72+72)
11.- Carlota Ciganda (Arizona State) 297 (74+76+75+72)
21.- Belen Mozo (Southern California) 299 (78+72+73+76)
25.- Marta Silva (Georgia) 300 (75+72+76+77)
75.- Carolina Andrade (Georgia) 312 (82+79+71+80)

TEAM CLASSIFICATION
1.- Arizona State 1182 (302+298+291+291)
2.- UCLA 1190 (296+293+304+297)
3.- Southern California 1191 (301+295+294+301)