Alison Lee of Valencia carded a 2-under-par 70 and was tied for 13th after the second of five rounds in the final stage of the LPGA Qualifying Tournament at LPGA International Golf Club in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Lee, a sophomore at UCLA and the fourth-ranked amateur in the world, recorded pars on her first 10 holes on the Hills Course after starting at No. 10, before making three birdies and a bogey at No. 7 on the front nine.
The top 20 finishers will earn full playing status on the LPGA Tour for 2015, while players finishing 21st through 45th will have conditional status. Lee has said she will leave UCLA and turn pro if she has full status.
Ju Young Park of South Korea shot 68 on the Jones Course and tied for the lead with first-round leader Casey Grice of College Station, Texas, who had a 69 on the Hills Course.
Sophia Popov of USC and Germany had a bogey-free 67 that included a short eagle putt on the final hole and was two strokes back in a tie for third with Samantha Richdale (66) of Canada and Elizabeth Nagel (69).
“USC definitely played a tremendous role in me getting better,” said Popov, one of five Trojans in the field. “All the support from the golf team and the entire athletic department at USC has really helped me a lot.”
Ryann O’Toole of San Clemente and UCLA followed an opening 67 with a 71 and was tied for sixth.
