Westerwinds take fifth at Grand Prairie Classic
Issue date: 4/8/09 Section: Sports
The Western Illinois women's golf team shot 647 as a team in two rounds to tie Northern Iowa for fifth place in the Hotels at Grand Prairie Classic hosted by Bradley University.
The tournament was originally scheduled for three rounds with 36 holes Saturday, April 4 and 18 holes on Sunday, April 5, but the format was changed due to the threat of inclement weather. The teams played 18 holes on both Friday and Saturday and the third round was cancelled.
The Westerwinds shot a 321 as a team Saturday and came out with a 326 Sunday to wrap up the fifth spot in the 14-team field. Drake took the team title with a score of 632 (314-318).
"Overall, I was pretty pleased with the performance," Western Illinois coach Lia Biehl Lukkarinen said. "We could have done better on the second day, but we were able to hold our place and that was important. It was a competitive field and we beat some pretty good teams."
Junior Tara Peterman tied a season-best with 77 in the opening round of the tournament followed by an 82 on the final day to tie for eighth place with a total of 159.
The Classic marked Peterman's second top-10 individual finish of the 2008-09 season and the second-consecutive tournament in which she has carded Western's lowest score.
Also breaking into the 70s, sophomore Westerwind Lindsay Wandrey paired a 77 on the final day with her opening-round 84 to tie for 12th place at 161. Rounding out the scoring for Western Illinois, Emily Brink tied for 22nd at 164 (81-83), Claire Gursh tied for 32nd at 166 (80-86), Becky Allen tied for 36th at 167 (83-84) and Maggie Henke came in 82nd at 184 (93-91).
Playing unattached, Western Illinois junior Jennifer Holt tied for 43rd at 168 (83-85). Drake's Olivia Lansing took individual medalist honors with a two-round score of 149 (77-72).
The Westerwinds will be back in action April 13-14 at the Park University Invitational in Parksville, Mo. for the team's final tune-up before the Summit League Championship April 20-21 at Rochester, Mich.
"We are making some progress. I was a little disappointed we didn't get to play 36 holes in one day, because that would be great preparation for conference," Lukkarinen said. "Hopefully we can use this final tournament to fine-tune our short game."
The tournament was originally scheduled for three rounds with 36 holes Saturday, April 4 and 18 holes on Sunday, April 5, but the format was changed due to the threat of inclement weather. The teams played 18 holes on both Friday and Saturday and the third round was cancelled.
The Westerwinds shot a 321 as a team Saturday and came out with a 326 Sunday to wrap up the fifth spot in the 14-team field. Drake took the team title with a score of 632 (314-318).
"Overall, I was pretty pleased with the performance," Western Illinois coach Lia Biehl Lukkarinen said. "We could have done better on the second day, but we were able to hold our place and that was important. It was a competitive field and we beat some pretty good teams."
Junior Tara Peterman tied a season-best with 77 in the opening round of the tournament followed by an 82 on the final day to tie for eighth place with a total of 159.
The Classic marked Peterman's second top-10 individual finish of the 2008-09 season and the second-consecutive tournament in which she has carded Western's lowest score.
Also breaking into the 70s, sophomore Westerwind Lindsay Wandrey paired a 77 on the final day with her opening-round 84 to tie for 12th place at 161. Rounding out the scoring for Western Illinois, Emily Brink tied for 22nd at 164 (81-83), Claire Gursh tied for 32nd at 166 (80-86), Becky Allen tied for 36th at 167 (83-84) and Maggie Henke came in 82nd at 184 (93-91).
Playing unattached, Western Illinois junior Jennifer Holt tied for 43rd at 168 (83-85). Drake's Olivia Lansing took individual medalist honors with a two-round score of 149 (77-72).
The Westerwinds will be back in action April 13-14 at the Park University Invitational in Parksville, Mo. for the team's final tune-up before the Summit League Championship April 20-21 at Rochester, Mich.
"We are making some progress. I was a little disappointed we didn't get to play 36 holes in one day, because that would be great preparation for conference," Lukkarinen said. "Hopefully we can use this final tournament to fine-tune our short game."
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