Nov. 4, 2002
Southern Pines, N.C. – The Notre Dame women’s golf team fired rounds of 315 and 303 for a 36-hole total of 618 after 36 holes of play at the Pine Needles Invitational Monday afternoon. That puts the Irish 25 strokes behind tournament leader North Carolina State as the Wolfpack turned in rounds of 303 and 290 for a 593 total. The tournament is being played at the par 71, 6,017-yard Pine Needles Golf Club.
Notre Dame’s second-round total of 303 was the lowest round of the season for the Irish and ties for the third-lowest round in the program’s history. Previous best rounds for the women’s program include a 295 at the Midwest Classic (’97-’98), a 302 at the Kentucky Invitational (’97-’98) and a 303 at the Illinois Spring Classic (’97-’98).
North Carolina State goes into Tuesday’s final round of play with a three-stroke lead on the University of North Carolina. The Tar Heels shot a 28-over par 596 (304-292) to join North Carolina State as the only teams with sub-600 rounds in the 11-team tournament.
Baylor was third with a 607 (300-307) while Miami (FL) was fourth with a 610 (316-294) and Rollins College rounded out the top five with a 613 total (314-299) to put them five strokes ahead of Notre Dame going into the final 18 holes.
Notre Dame’s top golfer after 36 holes is freshman Katie Brophy (Spokane, Wash.) who is tied for 11th with a nine-over par 151 after rounds of 78 and 73. The second-round one-over par 73 is the best round of Brophy’s first semester with the Irish.
The talented freshman is five strokes behind the leaders – Abby Spector and Meghan Adams of North Carolina. Both golfers have four-over par totals of 146. Adams was among the leaders after one round with a 74 before firing an even-par 72 for her 146. Spector opened with a 76, but added a two-under par 70 in the afternoon round to move into a tie for first.
Teammate Ashley Prange (74-73) and North Carolina State’s Colby Cobb (74-73) are tied for third with N.C. State’s Sarah Bonner (77-71) and Miami’s Tina Miller (81-67) rounding out the top five spots with six-over par 148.
Joining Brophy in the top 20 for the Irish are Sarah Bassett (Fr., Spokane, Wash.) and Rebecca Rogers (Jr., Alpharetta, Ga.) as both golfers were tied for 19th. Bassett opened with a 79 and then fired a 75 in the second round for her 154 total. Rogers shot 78-76 to join three golfers at 154.
Shannon Byrne (Jr., Arlington Heights, Ill.) and Terri Taibl (Sr., Elm Grove, Wis.) round out the Irish scoring five as they enter the final round tied for 41st with a 161 total. Byrne shot 80-81 for her 36 holes and Taibl had rounds of 82-79 for the day. Freshman Lauren Barbir (Montgomery, Texas), playing as an individual entrant, fired rounds of 81 and 83 for a 164 total and is tied for 48th.
Tuesday’s final round of play will begin at 8:30 a.m. at the Pine Needles Golf Club with a shotgun start. This is the final tournament of the fall for the Notre Dame women’s golf team.
TEAM RESULTS (54-hole totals): 1. North Carolina State 303-290-593; 2. North Carolina 304-292-596; 3. Baylor 200-307-607; 4. Miami 316-294-610; 5. Rollins College 314-299-613; 6. Notre Dame 315-303-618; 7. James Madison 315-311-626; 8. Minnesota 311-319-630; 9. Yale 328-313-641; 10. Stetson 332-315-647; 11. Richmond 342-347-689.
TOP 10 INDIVIDUALS (of 62): t1. Abby Spector (North Carolina) 76-70-146; Meghan Adams (North Carolina) 74-72-146; t3. Ashley Prange (North Carolina) 74-73-147; Colby Cobb (North Carolina State) 74-73-147; t5. Sarah Bonner (North Carolina State) 77-71-148; Tina Miller (Miami) 81-67-148; t7. Mariana DeBiase (Rollins) 78-72-150; Briana Vega (North Carolina State) 78-72-150; Michaelyn Morgan (Baylor) 74-76-150; Courtney Pomeranz (North Carolina State) 76-74-150.
NOTRE DAME INDIVIDUALS (of 62): t11. Katie Brophy 78-73-151; t19. Sarah Bassett 79-75-154; Rebecca Rogers 78-76-154; t41. Shannon Byrne 80-81-161; Terri Taibl 82-79-161; * t48. Lauren Barbir 81-83-164.
*individual entrant