The Santa Clara University women's golf team used the fall to show just how close this group is to breaking through. With top-four finishes in every event, historic low rounds, and a level of consistency and chemistry head coach Krystal Kelly calls the best she's seen in nearly 16 years, the Broncos turned the non-championship season into proof of what they're building toward — and a preview of the ceiling they believe they can reach when the spring schedule ramps up.
 
SETTING THE BAR
 
In four tournaments, the Broncos finished no worse than fourth, stacked up a 53-5-1 head-to-head record, and posted a 287.75 team scoring average that ranks 26th among all NCAA Division I programs. They opened the fall in September by winning the first tournament of the season, marking the 19th tournament title of Kelly's Santa Clara career. All four final team scores from the fall now sit inside the program's top 10 – at second, third, fourth and ninth – a snapshot of just how consistent and complete the surge has been.
 
Santa Clara opened the Rainbow Wahine Invitational with an 8-under-par 280, the second-best 18-hole round in school history. Senior captain Audrey Brust tied her own program record with a 5-under 67 in the second round, and junior Kelsey Kim stacked consecutive 5-under 211s at the Rainbow Wahine and the Golf Iconic Classic. Kim and Brust finished inside the top 15 at all four events.
 
Individually, the numbers tell an equally sharp story. Kim currently owns the lowest career scoring average in program history at 73.85, while Brust sits third at 74.90. Kim logged five rounds under par in the fall – already one shy of her career best and four off the program's single-season record of nine.
 
For Kelly, none of this feels like a surprise. It feels like a culmination.
 
WHY IT CLICKED
 
Kelly doesn't hesitate when asked what lit the match for this fall.
 
Winning the 2025 National Golf Invitational.
 
"I think one, winning NGI was probably the catalyst for this," she said. "Winning obviously can highly motivate people."
 
But it wasn't just that one moment. The Broncos arrived on campus with a level of competitive seasoning Kelly hasn't seen in years.
 
Her players combined for roughly 23 summer tournaments – far more than usual – and they weren't just casual reps. They were meaningful, pressure-situational rounds.
 
"I think coming into the season they were incredibly prepared from a competitive standpoint," Kelly said. "And I think they also knew that we were gonna be a little bit more competitive. So it was like they had to put the time in over summer, because maybe that spot they had last year may not be their spot again."
 
From there, the technical pieces they've been working on for more than a year finally began to stack together.
 
"We really worked on off-the-tee," Kelly said. "Off the tee, they were a lot more consistent. Ball striking was probably the best I've seen out of my entire almost 16 years here. They were just incredibly confident."
 
Putting – especially inside 12 feet – was the final piece.
 
"They made more putts from three to 12 feet than I've seen in a very long time. So, if you're hitting fairways and your ball striking's good and you're making putts, it's kind of the perfect recipe."
 
THE CORE OF THE CLIMB
 
Brust, Kim, Alexa Pineda, Chloe Lam, and Proud Sriwongngam played every tournament this fall, but Kelly is adamant that the team's strength extends down the roster.
 
The improvement shows up in more than scoring. It's in chemistry, in trust, and in how each of them responds to good days and bad.
 
"I know a lot of coaches say their team chemistry is amazing, but I can truly say if we never played a better round of golf again and I could have this chemistry and culture, I'd sign for it in a heartbeat," Kelly said. "They're super supportive of one another… by the time we leave the golf course, you never know what any of them shot."
 
She calls it being "committed and connected." When they are, she says, they play even better.
 
INSIDE THE LINEUP
 
Here's how Kelly describes the group that produced one of the strongest falls in program history:
 
• Audrey Brust – "Audrey is who you want to represent your program to the 1000th degree," said Kelly, calling her someone who "embodies everything we're looking for." Brust excels in every area, sets the cultural and competitive standard, and leaves behind a legacy her coach said will be extremely difficult to replace.
 
• Kelsey Kim – "Kelsey has come so far since her freshman year," Kelly said, pointing to a key swing change that helped eliminate her biggest miss and take her consistency to another level. Kelly noted Kim's work ethic and competitiveness and added that she has "set a really high bar for herself" with "big, big things coming" in the seasons ahead.
 
• Alexa Pineda – "Alexa played the U.S. Women's Am and made it to match play," said Kelly, who added that returning from injury gave her "a bigger appreciation and joy for the game." After missing time last year, Pineda put together an outstanding summer run that carried into the fall, delivering several strong rounds showing her renewed confidence and momentum.
 
• Chloe Lam – "Chloe's my Steady Eddie," Kelly said, praising her reliability and consistency throughout the lineup. She highlighted Lam's "super high" bounce-back factor and the way she routinely turns difficult rounds into strong finishes, a sign of the growth she's made in the program.
 
• Proud Sriwongngam – "Proud can go super low," Kelly said, emphasizing not only her scoring potential but also her impact on team energy. She described Sriwongngam as "super supportive of her teammates," the type of personality who cheers so loudly and joyfully "you would think she's at a basketball game," giving the team an emotional spark every day.
 
• Amy Im – "Amy is another of the Steady Eddies… my silent assassin," Kelly said, noting her excellent qualifying performance and dependable temperament. Im's ability to stay composed regardless of circumstance makes her a steadying force who pushes the lineup through daily competitiveness.
 
• Rachael Wang – "I love Rachael," Kelly said, highlighting her effort, resilience, and attitude as core strengths. Wang represents Santa Clara with a maturity and steadiness her coach deeply appreciates, bringing consistency and positivity to the team environment.
 
• Jamie Jiang – "Jamie has a good swing and a good résumé," Kelly said, describing this season as a developmental one focused on helping her "learn as much as she can." Jiang is adjusting to the college game and building the foundation to contribute confidently when her opportunity arrives.
 
• Margaret Zhang – "Margaret has a good swing," Kelly said, describing her as another promising freshman adjusting to the college game alongside Jiang. She is learning, gaining experience and building confidence so she'll be ready to step in when called upon.
 
WHAT COMES NEXT
 
With winter approaching, Kelly's message is simple: the fall is not the finish line — it's the starting point.
 
"I think we set the tone with being super competitive, so kind of the messaging this offseason has been like, even though it's offseason, it's not offseason," she said.
 
The internal competition that drove the fall isn't slowing down. Players like Im, who played every event last year but not this fall, push the top five daily. Several Broncos are also keeping sharp through high-level tournaments in December: Alexa Pineda and Chloe Lam are competing in the 2025 U.S. Women's Amateur Four-Ball Qualifier on December 8 at The Olympic Club in San Francisco, and Kelsey Kim will play the California Women's Open December 17–19 at Desert Springs in Palm Desert. On top of that, the staff is sending players home with specific practice plans so winter work stays purposeful, not just time on the range.
 
And the schedule is about to get tougher.
 
"Our strength of schedule is much stronger in the winter and spring," Kelly said. "If they can continue to play the caliber of golf they're playing with a more competitive schedule, rankings should improve, and ranking improves potential postseason implications."
 
The goals aren't small, and they aren't subtle.
 
"We do want to win a conference championship," Kelly said. "If these five can put it all together on the same day, that's going to be an incredibly scary low score."
 
For Kelly, this fall is a sign of where the program is headed.
 
"They're young and they're super motivated," she said. "They want it more than any team I've ever had."