Olympic breakthrough for American Gerina Piller?

— -- RIO DE JANEIRO -- Gerina Piller is America's best hope for a medal in the women's Olympic golf tournament. And for someone who got emotional just talking about that possibility prior to the event, it's a big burden to carry into the final round on Saturday.

Managing the emotions is part of the task at hand, she said.

"I'm just going to accept them,'' Piller said after a 68 put her at 9 under and in the final group with tournament leader Inbee Park (-11) and New Zealand's Lydia Ko (-9). "I'm going to welcome them into my head. They are going to pop in there and you can't ignore it. If I can really just focus on what I'm doing at hand, your mind is going to wander, and I think that it's the way you handle it and how you receive that information.

"If something comes in my head and I use that as motivation and just a lot of confidence, I think that's going to do me a lot of good.''

Piller, 31, has never won on the LPGA Tour, but she's played on two U.S. Solheim Cup teams and had a strong year to qualify for the Olympics, tying for eighth at the U.S. Women's Open to move inside the top 15 by mere percentage points.

She is 2 shots back of Park and tied for second with Ko. American Stacy Lewis, after a 63 on Thursday, shot 76 on Friday to drop into a tie for eighth, 7 strokes back. Lexi Thompson is tied for 31st after a 76.

"I allow myself to think about it,'' Piller said of earning a medal. "Because I'm a firm believer that when you see yourself doing something, and you keep running that through your mind, then you're more likely to do that.

"So just really see myself up in contention, up at the top of the leaderboard, standing on that podium, and just really giving myself belief and self-talk that I do belong here. I feel like I have a chance at this.''