College of Charleston Women's Golf Wins Pinehurst Challenge

Pinehurst, N.C. - Three Cougars posted top 10 finishes to lead the College of Charleston women's golf team to an eight stroke victory at the Pinehurst Challenge held Nov. 2-3 at Pinehurst #6 in Pinehurst, N.C.  Western Carolina finished second with a 592.

"It was a great victory for the team and a good way to end the fall," said Head Coach Jamie Futrell, who wins his first tournament since taking the Stono Cup title in the fall of 2008.  This young team grew up a lot this weekend."

Morehead State carded a 603 for third while Wichita State came in fourth with a 607.  Rounding out the top five was Eastern Kentucky with a two-day finish of 609.  The Cougars finished with a 584 after shooting a 591 in the first round and a 593 in the second.

Vanessa Koechli (Greer, S.C.) led the Cougars with a second-place finish after shooting a 71 in the first round and a 74 in the second to total a 145.

Lucia Fernandez of Jacksonville State took home individual medalist honors with a 144 after carding a 70 and 74 in two rounds.

Kathy Boehm (Poing, Germany) tied for third with a 146.  She shot a two-under 70 in the second round after firing a 76 in the first.  Tied for ninth was Ainhoa Nogales (Pozuelo de Alarcon, Spain) after she finished with a148.  Leigh Whittaker (Baden-Baden, Germany) tied for 16th with a 150 and tied for 21st was Emily Rapp (Simpsonville, S.C.) with her 152.  She fired a 73 in the second round, a six-stroke improvement from her 79 in the first.

Anna Martin (Easley S.C.) and Maeve McKenna (Hangham, Mass.) competed for the Cougars as individuals with Martin tying for 47th with a 160 and McKenna finishing 75th with a 179.

Charleston posted a tournament-leading 25 birdies and 124 pars.

"Winning at a special place like Pinehurst makes the victory all the more meaningful.  The win gives the team some momentum heading into a difficult schedule this spring."

The Cougars are off for the winter and resume action Feb. 21-23 at the Edwin Watts/Kiawah Island Classic on Kiawah Island, S.C.

.Team Results

1 - College of Charleston, 291-293=584    

2 - Western Carolina, 296-296=592    

3 - Morehead State, 298-305=603    

4 - Wichita State, 307-300=607    

5 - Eastern Kentucky, 304-305=609    

6 - Winthrop, 310-303=613    

7 - Jacksonville, 310-305=615    

T8 - Jacksonville State, 308-310=618    

T8 - Old Dominion, 316-302=618    

10 - Appalachian State, 308-312=620    

11 - Charleston Southern, 321-304=625    

12 - Radford, 322-313=635    

13 - Creighton, 322-324=646    

14 - The Citadel, 339-330=669    

15 - South Carolina State, 343-332=675

College of Charleston

2 - Vanessa Koechli, 71-74=145

T3 - Kathy Boehm, 76-70=146

T9 - Ainhoa Nogales, 70-78=148

T16 - Leigh Whittaker, 74-76=150

T21 - Emily Rapp, 79-73=152

T47 - Anna Martin, 81-79=160

75 - Maeve McKenna, 87-92=179

WCU Women’s Golf Closes the Fall with a Second Place Finish at Pinehurst Challenge

Desiree Karlsson leads three in top 10; Blaire Minter, Josefine Sundh finish 7th and 9th

Pinehurst, N.C. – Western Carolina put all four of its scoring golfers inside the top 20, duplicating its opening round eight-over 296 to conclude the fall portion of its 2009-10 schedule with a runner-up team finish at the Pinehurst Fall Challenge at the par-72, 6,004-yard Pinehurst No. 6 on Tuesday.

Tournament host, College of Charleston, shot a 293 over the final 18 holes to finish the two-day event at 584, eight strokes ahead of the Catamounts in second place at 592. WCU held an 11-stroke advantage over third place, Morehead State at 603, with Wichita State (603) and Eastern Kentucky (609) rounding out the top five finishers.

WCU, which led the tournament with a combined 124 pars, also finished ahead of Southern Conference rivals, Appalachian State (10th, 620) and The Citadel (14th, 669).

The second-place finish concludes a very successful fall season for the Catamounts that saw the squad record five top 10 team finishes and four inside the top five. Western Carolina opened the year with three-straight team victories that also featured three-consecutive individual medalists before concluding the opening five tournaments with the runner-up.

Senior Desiree Karlsson paced the squad in a tie for third with a 36-hole score of 146, one-stroke ahead of sophomore Blaire Minter who was tied for seventh at 147 after a one-over 73 in the final round. Karlsson led the tournament with 30 pars with Minter finishing tied for second with 27 in regulation. Senior Josefine Sundh matched Minter’s final round 73 to shoot 148 and finish one stroke in arrears in a tie for ninth-place overall.

Rounding out WCU’s scorers was freshman Malin Jansson, who shot 75-76 for 151 that featured six birdies – tied for second-most in the tournament – to finish tied for 19th with senior Tiffany Schisler carding consecutive rounds of 79 to shoot 158 and finish tied for 42nd.

Playing as an individual, sophomore Ashley Shinn trimmed seven strokes off her opening round score, shooting three-over 75 on Tuesday to finish tied for 53rd.

Western Carolina will now turns its attention to the six-event spring that tees off in February and includes hosting a pair of events - the Low Country Intercollegiate (March 12-14) and the Mimosa Hills Intercollegiate (April 4-6). WCU opens play on February 20-23 at the Edwin Watts / Kiawah Island Classic at the Oak Point and Cougar Point Golf Courses on Kiawah Island, S.C.

SAMFORD WOMEN’S GOLF PLACES SECOND AT UAB FALL BEACH BLAST

The Bulldogs’ Sara Hunt finished tied for second in the prestigious two-day tournament

GULF SHORES, Ala. --- The Samford University women’s golf team completed its 2009 fall schedule on Tuesday as the Bulldogs rallied for a second-place finish at the UAB Fall Beach Blast held at The Peninsula Golf & Racquet Club. The finish was Samford’s third-consecutive, top-five placement of the season.

“I’m very proud of how our team played this week,” said Samford head coach Woodie Eubanks. “We had a really good fall season and we’re looking forward to the spring schedule. I know that we have a lot of talent on this squad and I’m excited to see how good we can be if we continue to improve and get better each time out.”

Samford was paced at the 2009 UAB Fall Beach Blast by senior Sara Hunt. Hunt, the Bulldogs’ native of Columbia, Tenn., fired a team-best 72 on Tuesday and finished tied for second place in the individual standings. She concluded the 36-hole tournament with a score of 147, after opening the competition with a 75 on Monday.

“Sara really had a great tournament,” Eubanks said. “She turned in an outstanding score today and played very well. I’m proud of how she finished and she had a really good fall season.”

As a team, Samford carded a two-round score of 605 (301-304) and finished second in the 12-team field. The Bulldogs only trailed first-place Memphis by 10 strokes in the two-day competition held at the Peninsula Golf & Racquet Club in Gulf Shores, Ala.

Senior Katelyn Stanier earned her fourth-consecutive, top-10 finish Tuesday as she concluded the tournament in a two-way tie for sixth place. The Bulldogs’ native of Newnan, Ga., finished with a 36-hole score of 149 (73-76).

Samford’s Sarah Butts earned a top-20 finish and true freshman Anna Heim placed 26th. Butts tallied a two-day mark of 154 (76-78), while Heim fired a 155 (77-78). The Bulldogs’ Heather Arnold also finished with a solid score Tuesday. Samford’s junior native of Lenior City, Tenn., carded a 157 (78-79).

ASU Women’s Golf Takes Tenth at Pinehurst

PINEHURST, N.C. - Rumbidzai Masamvu turned in the best round of her freshman campaign with a 74-75-149 (+5) to lead Appalachian State University women's golf to a 10th-place finish at the Pinehurst Fall Challenge. The freshman led all players with seven birdies.

The Mountaineers posted their lowest team round of the fall season on Monday, en route to a 308-312-620 (+44) final score, just two strokes behind a tie for eighth place.

Kerri Dice matched her best round of the fall and placed 21st with a 75-77-152 (+8) while Brooke DeHart was four strokes back in 35th place at 78-78-156 (+12).

Kristina Boo shot an 81-82-163 (+19) for 55th place and fellow freshman Mimi Burke carded an 83-83-166 (+22) for 62nd.

Host College of Charleston shot a 584 (+8) to earn the team title, eight strokes ahead of Western Carolina. Jacksonville State's Lucia Fernandez took home the individual title at 70-74-144 (even).

The Mountaineers return to the course in the spring for the championship season.

Bulldog Golf Finishes 14th at Pinehurst Fall Challenge

Pinehurst, N.C. - The Citadel Golf team completed the Pinehurst Fall Challenge in 14th place shooting a 669 on Tuesday in Pinehurst, N.C. The Challenge was hosted by the Southern Conference opponent the College of Charleston and included 15 teams in a two-day event.

For the second consecutive tournament, sophomore Bree Baumgartner led the Bulldogs firing a 164 (+20) finishing tied for 57th place. Alanna-Jean Keith and Christine Clark tied for 68th place, while Sheri Rockefeller and Natalie Flores rounded out the scoring for the Bulldogs.

The hosting Cougars claimed the team title shooting a combined score of 548 (+8). In the individual competition, Lucia Fernandez of Jacksonville State concluded the challenge in first place with a par 144.  

The Citadel will resume competition in the spring at the Kiawah Invitational in Kiawah Island, S.C. on Feb. 21, 2010. For complete results and recaps of The Citadel Golf go to CitadelSports.com.

The Citadel Results
14 The Citadel   339-330-669

T57 Bree Baumgartner  85-79-164 (+20)
T68 Alanna-Jean Keith  84-84-168 (+24)
T68 Christine Clark       84-84-168 (+24)
T70 Sheri Rockefeller    86-83-169 (+25)
  77 Natalie Flores      90-94-184 (+40)