Kentucky, United States: New Zealand’s Fiona Xu and Australian Justice Bosio are through to the quarter-finals of the 73rd US Girls’ Junior Championship.

The Asia-Pacific duo both won twice on Thursday at The Club at Old Stone to progress to the final eight.

Xu, a member of the New Zealand team that finished runners-up in May’s Queen Sirikit Cup in Singapore, will face off against American Sara Im, who is bidding to win two USGA championships in the same calendar year.

After defeating Emily Mathews one-up in the Round of 32, 17-year-old Xu overcame another American, Asterisk Talley, 2&1 in the Round of 16.

Winner of this year’s Australian Women’s Amateur Championship, Xu began the week in 89th place in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR). That’s seven spots ahead of Bosio who has a quarter-final showdown with American Gianna Clemente, at age 14 the youngest player remaining in the tournament.

Bosio, fresh from a quarter-final appearance in last week’s North & South Women’s Amateur at Pinehurst No 2 in North Carolina, ended the championship hopes of Club at Olde Stone member Kynadie Adams, with a 4&3 victory in the Round of 16.

In fact, Bosio, played just 29 holes on Thursday. She defeated Mackenzie Lee by 5&4 in the Round of 32. Through three matches, Bosio has played only 42 holes, the fewest of any of the final eight competitors.

“I think I’ve been in pretty good form lately. I’ve been playing pretty well. Hopefully, tomorrow I can go a bit deeper than the quarters,” she said.

Joining Xu, Bosio, Im and Clemente in the last eight are Americans Yana Wilson, 2021 US Girls’ Junior quarter-finalist, and Reese McCauley, Colombian Maria Jose Marin and Canadian Nicole Gal.

Im, the 2018 Drive, Chip & Putt age 12-13 division champion, is three victories away from joining Pearl Sinn, Jennifer Song and Seong Eun-jeong as the only female players to win multiple USGA titles in the same calendar year. Seong won the 2016 US Girls’ Junior and US Women’s Amateur. Sinn (1988) and Song (2009) won the now-retired US Women’s Amateur Public Links and US Women’s Amateur.

Chinese Taipei’s Tiffany Huang Ting-hsuan, 2022 North & South Girls Junior champion, was eliminated 4&3 by Wilson in the Round of 16. Earlier in the day, Huang had swept aside Japan’s Nika Ito 5&4 in the Round of 32.

Tight matches and comebacks were part of Clemente’s day. She rallied from four- down with eight to play to defeat Adrian Anderson two-up, in the Round of 32 before knocking out Kiara Romero 2&1.

Romero was coming off a dramatic one-up win over co-medallist and number one seed Saki Baba, of Japan. She birdied 14, 17 and 18 to overcome a three-down deficit with five to play.