Mesa Community College holds the early advantage after the opening round of the NJCAA Region I Women's Golf Championships.

The Thunderbirds sit in first place at +43, leading South Mountain, which is close behind at +49. Paradise Valley rounds out the team standings in third at +137.

Individually, South Mountain's Lexi Tuinstra leads the field at +5 after a strong opening round. Mesa's Annalise Kooner sits in second at +9, keeping the Thunderbirds firmly in contention atop the team leaderboard.

Mesa continues to show depth, with Abree Germaine and Sara Sawyer tied for third at +10, providing key scoring rounds to support the team's first-place position. South Mountain's Elaina Hales rounds out the top five at +12.

With a tight gap between Mesa and South Mountain, the race for the Region I title remains wide open heading into the next round, as both teams look to separate from the field and secure positioning for the final stretch.