March 14, 2007
BOULDER CITY, Nev. – The Notre Dame women’s golf team carded a five-over par 293 during Wednesday’s third and final round of the UNLV Spring Invitational at the par-72 Boulder Creek Golf Club. The Fighting Irish concluded the event with a 906 (305-308-293) total and in 15th place overall. No. 14 BYU topped the 18-team field with a 17-under par 847 (280-283-284). Sophomore Lisa Maunu (St. Thomas, Ontario/Collegiate Parkside Institute) and freshman Kristin Wetzel (Middletown, N.Y./Hilton Head Prep) paced the Irish on the day as they both carded 72 totals.
Notre Dame’s 293 on Wednesday tied the program’s third-lowest 18-hole total ever. That mark also was achieved during the second round of the 2004 BIG EAST Championship. The Fighting Irish record for a single round of play is 285. The Irish’s total of 906 at the UNLV Invitational matched the team’s top 54-hole tournament score this season, which was previously accomplished at the Cougar Classic (Sept. 11-12).
Idaho’s Kelly Nakashima and Fresno State’s Jennifer Shipley tied for first with 205 (-11) totals. Shipley notched the tournament’s top round with an eight-under par 64 on Wednesday. Rachel Newren from BYU began the day atop the leader board, yet fell to third place with a score of 209.
No. 15 New Mexico finished 10 shots in back of BYU and in second place, while Idaho rounded out the top three with an 859. Washington State tied the tournament’s low round with an eight-under par 280 on Wednesday.
Senior Noriko Nakazaki (Hanover Park, Ill./Hoffman Estates) was Notre Dame’s top finisher with a 224 (75-73-76) total. She placed in a tie for 44th overall. Freshman Julie Kim (Bayside, N.Y./Bayside) joined Maunu with a 229 total and in a tie for 65th place. Kim carded rounds of 77, 75 and 77, while Maunu posted a 77 and 80 in the first two rounds, respectively.
Notre Dame freshman Annie Brophy (Spokane, Wash./Gonzaga Prep) had her best round of the season on Wednesday as she shot a one-over par 73 to finish tied for 68th with a 230 (76-81-73). Wetzel completed the Irish lineup with a 233 (81-80-72), which placed her in a tie at 81st. The even-par 72 during the third round tied her season-best mark.
The Fighting Irish will return to the course this weekend as they take part in the Betsy Rawls Longhorn Invitational at the University Golf Club in Austin, Texas. The tournament will take place Friday through Sunday (March 16-18) with 18 holes being played each day. Live results of the event are available at Golfstat.com. For additional information, log on to und.com or call the Notre Dame athletics hotline at (574) 631-3000.
UNLV Spring Invitational (Boulder Creek Golf Club – Boulder City, Nev. Par 72, 6,199-yards)
Team Scores (Final 54-hole totals): 1. BYU 847 (280-283-284), 2. New Mexico 857 (284-290-283), 3. Idaho 859 (292-281-286), 4. Indiana 864 (285-285-294), 5. UNLV 873 (299-286-288), 6. San Francisco 874 (298-290-286), 7. New Mexico State 877 (291-294-292), 8. Washington State 881 (300-301-280), 9. Fresno State 882 (299-296-287), 10. Campbell 889 (299-291-299), 11. Texas Tech 891 (298-291-302), 12. Iowa 893 (300-302-291), 13. Nebraska 894 (298-298-298), 14. Long Beach State 898 (300-298-300), 15. Notre Dame 906 (305-308-293), 16. Boise State 907 (300-310-297), 17. Eastern Washington 908 (317-301-290), 17. San Diego State 914 (298-310-306)
Top-5 Golfers (out of 96) (Final 54-hole totals): 1t. Kelly Nakashima (Idaho) 205 (72-68-65), 1t. Jennifer Shipley (Fresno State) 205 (71-70-64), 3. Rachel Newren (BYU) 209 (67-70-72), 4. Danielle von Arnim (BYU) 210 (71-68-71)
Notre Dame Scores (Final 54-hole totals): 44t. Noriko Nakazaki 224 (75-73-76), 65t. Julie Kim 229 (77-75-77), 65t. Lisa Maunu 229 (77-80-72), 68t. Annie Brophy 230 (76-81-73), 81t. Kristin Wetzel 233 (81-80-72)