TALLAHASSEE – Lydia Gumm was so excited to one day bring her University of Houston women’s golf team to the Florida State Match Up at the Seminole Legacy Golf Club that when she was making up her 2024-25 schedule she took matters into her own hands.

The Florida State alumnus and two-time All-ACC selection called Florida State head coach Amy Bond hoping to get an invitation. Before she could speak the words into her cell phone, Bond extended an invitation for Gumm and her Cougars to play as one of the 13 teams in the 2025 Match Up which begins Friday and runs through Sunday at the Seminole Legacy Golf Club.

“I said yes right away,” said Gumm who was a standout Florida State player from 2014-17. “I have really been wanting to get back to Tallahassee and play in the FSU Match Up. I’m super excited that the Cougars are in such prestigious event on such a great course. I’m excited to see Seminole for the first time since the redo.”

Gumm graduated from Florida State in 2017 with a degree in in sport management and ranks 14^th in school history with a career stroke average of 73.89. She played in a school record 131 career rounds, earned 10 top-10 individual finishes, and won the individual championship of the 2016 Florida Challenge with a three under par tournament score.

Gumm anchored the Seminoles during one of the most successful four-year periods in the history of the program. With Gumm in the lineup the Seminoles won nine tournament championships, played four NCAA Regional Championships and two NCAA Championship Finals. Gumm helped lead the Seminoles to a second place finish in the 2016 Shoal Creek Regional Championship and to a third place finish in the 2017 Columbus Regional Championship.

“I have so many great memories from my career at Florida State,” said Gumm. “We had such a good team and we were all so close. I loved all of my coaches and my teammates. The year that will always stand out is my senior season. We won seven times and were ranked No. 1 in the nation for a long time. It was a special run that we were on.”

Gumm returns to Tallahassee in her fourth season as the head coach at Houston. She began her career as a volunteer assistant at Louisville, and became an assistant coach at Houston in 2018. Gumm (now Lasparilla) ascended to the head coaching position of the Cougar program in 2021.

“The best thing about being a head coach is the ability to have an impact on my players’ lives,” said Gumm. “I hope that I can make a lasting impact on the lives of each of my players who comes through my program. I take a lot of responsibility for players who are ages 18-22 which is an important part of their lives. It’s hard being away from home for these girls and I we want to make being a golfer at the University of Houston the best experience it can be.

“We spend so much time in the course and at practice with them , but in reality it’s important to get to know them off the course, too.  I want to help them become the best player they can be while at UH, while also helping them become the best person they can be, and prepare them for life after college.”

Returning to the Florida State campus to play in the Florida State Match Up holds a special significance for Gumm.

She was a member of two Match Up winning teams (2016 and 2017) and earned two top 12 individual finishes. She finished in 11^th place in the individual standings with a 3 over par score of 219 in 2016 and finished in a tie for second place with an eight under par score of 208 in 2016.

Gumm earned three top-20 finishes in four appearance in the Florida State Match Up.

For Gumm, her team’s participation in the 2025 Florida State Match Up is just the third time she will return to campus since 2017. She worked Florida State’s golf camp in 2019 and was in Tallahassee when teammate Carlton Kuhlo (Warren) was married.

“I’m definitely going to be excited,” said Gumm. “Excited to be back on campus, excited to see Seminole. I haven’t seen the course since the renovation was completed. I’m excited to so many familiar faces, and most importantly I’m excited to watch my girls compete at a place that is so special to me.”

Gumm counts being ranked No. 1 in the nation as a member of the Seminole golf team and storming the football field as the historical Doak Campbell Stadium after the Seminoles’ football team defeated Notre Dame in 2014 as her greatest memories of her Florida State career.

“I never really thought this day would come,” said Gumm. “In college golf you have no idea what the future holds. I wanted to play professionally, and if not, I knew I would love to be a coach. But I was never sure it would happen. I never expected to bring one of my teams to Tallahassee as a head coach.”

The Florida State Match Up at the Seminole Legacy begins with a practice round on Thursday and each of the three rounds of the championship beginning at 8:45 a.m. on Friday at Saturday and 8:00 a.m. on Sunday. Gumm’s Cougars begin their practice round on Thursday at 10:00 on hole No. 1.

Admission and parking are free on each of the four days of event.