Blinn Women's Golf Team Blinn Invitational 2025

General 4/9/2025 12:10:00 AM

No. 7 Buccaneer women claim Blinn Invitational behind strong showing for Syed sisters

The Buccaneer men placed third, led by sophomore Gabe Herbst's third-place performance

General 4/9/2025 12:10:00 AM

No. 7 Buccaneer women claim Blinn Invitational behind strong showing for Syed sisters

The Buccaneer men placed third, led by sophomore Gabe Herbst's third-place performance

The Blinn College men's and women's golf teams finished play at the two-day Blinn Invitational on Tuesday at the Brenham Country Club in Brenham, Texas.

The Buccaneer women – ranked seventh by the National Collegiate Golf Ranking System – captured the team title with a 40-over-par performance in an eight-team competition, while Blinn's men's Blue team (ranked 13th) placed third out of eight teams after checking in at 12-over par.

The Blinn women earned their first victory of the spring behind stellar individual performances from tournament champion and freshman Daniah Syed, as well as her sister, freshman and runner-up Abiha Syed.

The Bucs outlasted runner-up and 10th-ranked McLennan Community College by 13 strokes and shined in a tournament that featured six ranked teams.

"I was very pleased with our team effort," said Blinn assistant coach Gary Belt, who manages the Buccaneer women during tournaments. "We struggled with scoring most of the spring season, but the ladies answered the call this week. Daniah was spectacular, and I was proud of the way she handled the pressure of playing with the lead. It was very impressive."

Daniah Syed 2024-25

(Pictured: Blinn's Daniah Syed chips toward the hole during the Blinn Invitational on April 7, 2025)

Across two rounds of play, Daniah Syed finished even on the par 72 course. Her previous best finish of the spring was third place at the Hal Sutton Invitational on March 18.

Additionally, Abiha Syed was 6-over to tie for second place, and fellow Bucs Pai Tassaneetipagorn (sophomore) and Abigail O'Brien (freshman) cracked the top 20 at 11th and 14th place, with 16-over and 18-over showings, respectively.

"The course conditions were pretty good today, and all of our players have been putting in a lot of effort to make sure we would come out here and play well," Daniah Syed said. "I was happy to see the results finally show up on tournament day because we know we're capable of performances like this."

On the men's side, Blinn was paced by a 3-under out from sophomore Gabe Herbst, who had his best finish as a Buccaneer.

"Coming into the tournament, winning this thing was my goal, and I think I could have been a little bit better out here, but I'm still happy with where I ended up," Herbst said. "I definitely left some strokes on the course, but I did enough today to finish strong and there are plenty of moments to learn from."

Gabe Herbst 2024-25

(Pictured: Blinn's Daniah Gabe Herbst tees off during the Blinn Invitational on April 7, 2025)

Blinn sophomore Volker Henkel placed seventh at 3-over, and freshman Cody Peters finished inside the top 20 with a 9-over outing for a 16th-place tie. Sophomore Landon Johnson, competing for the Bucs' White team, tied Peters for 16th.

"I thought we played up to our potential in rounds one and two Monday, but our goal was to put three quality rounds together," Blinn head coach David Johnson said. "We struggled a little bit in today's final round, but it's just a matter of cleaning up a few basic things and we will be better. Gabe had his best tournament as a Buc, as he was on top of every aspect of his game this week. It was fun to see him have success. I thought Volker played well, as his putting is coming into form for our playoff run."

Next up for Blinn golf, the Buccaneer women will compete in the three-day NJCAA Division I Women's Golf Central District Championship on Monday, April 28, in Oklahoma City, Okla.

The Buccaneer men turn their focus to the two-day Texas State/Region XIV Championship on Monday, April 14, in Midland, Texas.

Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 50 national championships since 1987.

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