CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. --- The Chattanooga Mocs women's golf team again ranks among the nation's smartest. UTC is No. 21 overall and No. 10 among NCAA Division I programs according to the National Golf Coaches Association in a release Wednesday.

The Mocs had a combined grade point average of 3.621 for the 2011-12 academic year. That total is just a tick off of last year's 3.649 that ranked 20th overall and 13th in Division I.

Departing senior Maria Juliana Loza (Bucaramanga, Colombia) and rising sophomore Mette Kryger (Nivaa, Denmark) paced the academic effort with perfect 4.0 GPA's for the year. Loza majors in Mechanical Engineering, while Kryger studies are in Communications.

The dynamic duo earned NGCA All-American Scholar honors as well, the third year in a row the Mocs have had at least one national honoree. All five playing members of the team made the Dean's List at least one semester this year. Jordan Britt (Chattanooga, Tenn.), Marion Duvernay (Publier, France) and Sophie Weilguni (Langenlois, Austria) join Loza and Kryger in the team's recognition.

Neighboring Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn., had the highest GPA in the land at 3.965. Akron led all Division I programs at 3.766, fourth overall. UTC ranked just ahead of Coastal Carolina (3.617), Notre Dame (3.611) and Brown (3.605).  

Younger Loza Finishes Third in Colombia
Isabella Loza, incoming freshman and younger sister of Maria, competed recently at the Abierto de Golf in her hometown of Bucaramanga, Colombia. Loza finished third in the 72-hole event.

She started out with a disappointing 86 trailing the first round leader, Ana Maria Rengifo, by 13 shots. She bounced back with a 74 in round two and was five shots off the pace set by Laura Estefenn and moved up to fifth through 54 holes after a third-round 75.

A 77 in the final 18 placed her third, five shots behind champion Maria Vesga. Vesga was third heading into the final day shooting 73 to shoot past Estefenn for the win. Estefenn was second, four shots clear of Loza.