Women’s Golf Looks to Defend National Championship
May 12, 2026
TUSCALOOSA - The No. 1 ranked Shelton State Community College women's golf team looks to defend its national championship at the 2026 NJCAA Division II National Championship Tournament on its home course.
The Lady Bucs are one of 15 participating in the four-day event at Ol' Colony Golf Complex in Tuscaloosa.
There are three teams from Alabama, including No. 4 Wallace State Hanceville, No. 5 Jeff State Community College, and No. 6 Southern Union.
The list of Top 10 teams includes No. 2 Murray (Oklahoma) State, No. 3 Florida Gateway College, No. 7 Jacksonville (Texas) College, No. 8 Mesa Community College, and No. 9 Northwest Mississippi.
The field is rounded out by No. 11 Des Moines Area College, No. 13 Iowa Central Community College, No. 15 Northern Iowa Area College, No. 16 Rend Lake College, No. 17 Roane State College, and Carl Sandburg College.
The tournament will be held Tuesday, May 12-Friday, May 15. Play begins at 8 a.m. each day.
"We are so excited to host the National Championship here at our home course of Ol' Colony Golf Complex," Shelton State Head Coach Chris Sanford said. "It's a great venue and a great opportunity to defend our Championship from last year. There are a lot of good teams here, and we will need to play well to win."
Shelton State had a remarkable season, winning 11 of 12 events this season. The Lady Bucs won the ACCC Championship and the NJCAA South District Championship.
Freshman Katie Brannon was the Lady Bucs low scorer at the ACCC and South District Championship.
Sophomores Katie Hallmark and Sawyer Hobbs were a part of last year's National Championship squad.
"They are in a good frame of mind," Sanford added. "They have played pretty well the last two tournaments, but we have to keep that up. I think they are really ready to get out there and get going."